The amount of equity available in UK homes exceeded £740bn for the first time ever in the third quarter of this year, analysis by Canada Life has revealed.
Based on the latest Halifax quarterly regional house price index, the findings show that housing equity available to homeowners aged over 55 now stands at approximately £740.5bn.
This is an increase of over £10bn when compared to the second quarter of 2021, with house prices continuing to grow across almost every region of the UK.
Alice Watson, head of marketing for insurance at Canada Life, said that households are now looking at property wealth in a different way, seeing this as part of their retirement income, rather than a completely separate asset.
“The diverse nature of equity release products mean that they can be used to meet a range of evolving needs,” she continued.
“Whilst releasing equity from a property remains a very significant and individual decision, it has a valuable role to play in helping today’s homeowners live the retirement they’ve worked long and hard for.”
The region with the largest amount of available equity in the third quarter of this year was the South East, where the average price of a property is now £360,000, creating £143bn of potential equity.
This was closely followed by London, which now has £136bn of potential equity, despite average house prices here falling by 0.1% to around £510,500.
Property prices in Scotland, the East Midlands and East Anglia saw the largest growth in the third quarter, increasing by 2.8%, 2.4% and 2.2%, respectively. Scotland now has over £45bn of potential equity available, or almost £66,000 per household.
Homeowners in the North East, and Yorkshire had the least amount of equity available, with £54,489 and £65,385 per household, respectively.
Watson added: "With the right advice, equity release has proven it can help people to access their property wealth flexibly and safely.”
Image credit: iStock
Author: Chris Seekings
