Later Life Advice

Equity Release

For most of us, our houses are our major asset but they are also our home. To get the value out of them we can always move to a cheaper home and keep the difference but for many of us this is not practically or emotionally possible. For those that do wish to remain, your home may be a source of wealth that can be used to boost your retirement income.

Equity Release has been around for some time and in the early days the plans were very expensive and inflexible. Modern equity release plans can play a crucial role in retirement funding and the flexibility and safeguards which are built in to plans approved by the Equity Release Council mean that you can safely tap in to the value of your own home safe in the knowledge that you don’t need to worry about losing your home or making monthly repayments

Available to those over the age of 55, there are two types of plans; Lifetime mortgages and Home Reversion Plans. These plans allow you to release the value in the home via a special mortgage arrangement in which you usually don’t make any monthly interest payment. Instead the unpaid interest rolls up and is repaid on death or moving into residential care. You would continue to live in the property for as long as you want and you would still be the legal owner of your home. Please note that EAS does not give advice on home reversion schemes

You can opt to receive your money either as a lump sum or in instalments as an income. The amount you can release is normally dictated by your age and the property value. Some companies offer a no negative equity guarantee which means that you and your estate will never owe more than the value of your home.

This is a Lifetime Mortgage. To understand the features and risks, please ask for a personalised illustration. There may be a fee for lifetime mortgage advice. The precise amount of the fee will depend upon your circumstances

Long Term care

If a you or a family member are about to enter residential care, we know that you are facing a number of difficult decisions. It is a stressful time that is controlled by factors beyond your control. It is a fact that the funding of long term care is more likely to prove a problem for a family than paying an inheritance tax bill and more estates will be used up this way.

We have a number of experienced and qualified advisers who can guide you through the maze of regulation and help you make the difficult decisions that lie ahead. You will need to consider care requirements, state benefit entitlements, existing assets, local authority regulations, health and welfare both now and in the future.

This is a highly complex area and we are here to help you understand the alternatives available and the implications of any decisions you make.