Equity release can boost your retirement by unlocking the cash in your home

After spending so much of your life at work, you deserve to enjoy your retirement. You can boost it with equity release – find out how much with the calculator below

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We spend a huge part of our lives working.

In fact, the average Briton toils away for 3,507 days – and puts in 204 days of overtime – according to a survey by the Association of Accounting Technicians.

This equates to more than 84,000 hours over the course of a professional career. It’s a gruelling schedule and helps explain why they will dream of quitting their job 16 times a year!

After devoting so many hours working on behalf of your family, it’s essential you have the financial firepower to enjoy the retirement you truly deserve.

Take advantage of the wealth in your home

Of course, this isn’t straightforward. The combination of soaring living costs, helping your children through education, and caring for elderly relatives can take a massive toll on your resources.

So, what is the solution? Well, for thousands of people the answer is taking advantage of the wealth that has built up in their homes after years of price increases.

While you have been climbing the career ladder, your property has also been hard at work and is likely to be worth considerably more than when you bought it many years ago.

The good news is that equity release enables you to access this value – while allowing you to continue living in the property.

Releasing money from your home will give you access to tax-free cash to spend on a fun-packed retirement – the perfect reward for your many years of service.

Find out how much money you could access from your property wealth

The only question remaining will be how to spend it. Do you want to mark the end of your working life with a luxury holiday? How about the car you’ve longed to have on the driveway?

How much can you unlock?

There are two main types of equity release, both of which are available to homeowners with properties worth a minimum of £70,000.

A lifetime mortgage is the most popular form of equity release, as you continue to own 100 per cent of your home. It's available to homeowners aged 55 and over and it enables you to borrow money secured against your property – which can be taken as a lump sum or in smaller amounts over time.

With a home reversion plan, meanwhile, you sell all, or a percentage, of your house, while continuing to live in the home.

Calculate how much tax-free cash you can access

To understand the features and risks you will need to ask for a personalised illustration.

An equity release advisor will tell you how it will affect the amount of inheritance you can leave and if your entitlement to means-tested benefits could be affected, either now or in the future. They will explain that equity release requires paying off any existing mortgage and the money that you release, plus the accrued interest, will be repaid when you die or move into long-term care.

For an initial idea of roughly how much equity you could release from your property, try our equity release calculator here.