Equity release

There are two main types of equity release.

With a lifetime mortgage, you borrow against your home and keep owning it. The loan and the interest are usually repaid from the sale of your home when you die or move into long-term care.

With a home reversion plan, you sell all or part of your home to a provider in return for a lump sum or regular payments, and you can carry on living there.

Equity release is for homeowners, usually aged 55 or over. Home reversion plans usually have a higher minimum age.

People look at equity release for different reasons, for example to:

• add to their income in retirement
• pay for home improvements or adaptations
• pay off an existing mortgage, such as an interest-only mortgage that’s coming to an end
• help family, for example with a deposit for a home

• How much you can release depends mainly on your age and the value of your home, and sometimes on your health. The older you are, the more you may be able to release.
• You can usually take the money as a lump sum, or take some now and more later when you need it (drawdown). With drawdown, interest is charged only on the money you’ve taken.
• With some lifetime mortgages you can pay some or all of the interest each month, so the amount you owe grows more slowly, or not at all.
• You’ll need your own solicitor to act for you, and there are usually fees for the advice, the valuation and setting up the plan.
• Many plans follow the Equity Release Council’s standards. These include the right to live in your home for the rest of your life, or until you move into long-term care, as long as you keep to the plan’s terms, and that you won’t owe more than your home is worth when it’s sold. Ask the specialist adviser whether a plan meets them.

• Because interest is charged on interest, the amount you owe on a lifetime mortgage can double over time. The specialist adviser’s illustration shows how much it could grow.
• With a home reversion plan, you’ll usually receive less than the market value of the share of your home you sell.
• If you want to move home later, you may be able to take the plan with you, but only if the provider accepts your new home.
• Equity release is a long-term decision that affects your family too. It can help to talk it over with them before you decide.
• Equity release isn’t right for everyone. A specialist adviser should look at your circumstances and the alternatives before recommending anything.

Ask the specialist adviser for a personalised illustration: it sets out the features and risks of a lifetime mortgage.

Before you decide, it’s worth looking at other ways to raise money or reduce your costs, such as:

• moving to a smaller or less expensive home
• using savings or other assets
• checking you’re claiming all the benefits you’re entitled to
• a mortgage with monthly payments, such as a remortgage or a retirement interest-only mortgage, if you can afford the payments
• help from family

Remortgaging is something we do advise on: see Remortgaging and product transfers.

MoneyHelper (opens in a new tab), the free, government-backed guidance service, also explains equity release and the alternatives.

If you’re thinking about equity release, get in touch and we can talk through what you’re hoping to do. We’ll explain how a referral works and, if you’d like to look into it, put you in touch with a specialist adviser.

We don’t advise on equity release, so we won’t recommend a plan or tell you whether it’s right for you. That advice, and any recommendation, comes from the specialist adviser. Here’s how a referral works:

1. 1

   A free call with Phillip

   Tell Phillip what you’re hoping to do. He won’t advise you on equity release, but he can talk through what you’re looking for and explain how a referral works.

2. 2

   Your permission first

   With your agreement, Phillip passes your name and contact details to a specialist adviser within the Stonebridge network. We’re an Appointed Representative of Stonebridge Mortgage Solutions Ltd. Nothing is passed on without your permission.

3. 3

   Advice from the specialist adviser

   The specialist adviser should contact you and give you advice. They should explain their fees, and how they’re paid, before you decide anything.

Prefer to write? Send Phillip a message. Phillip replies within one working day.

Last reviewed 13 October 2026.