EQUITY RELEASE ADVICE, WITHOUT THE PRESSURE.
Clear, regulated equity release and lifetime mortgage advice for UK homeowners aged 55 and over. Understand your options, the costs, the risks and the alternatives before making a decision.
Important: Equity release can reduce the value of your estate and may affect entitlement to means-tested benefits. A lifetime mortgage is secured against your home.
The short answer
What is equity release, and is it right for you?
Equity release lets homeowners aged 55 and over release money from their home without moving. The most common type is a lifetime mortgage. You keep ownership, and the loan plus interest is normally repaid from the sale of your home when you die or move into long-term care. It can be useful, but it isn’t right for everyone.
Whether it suits you depends on why you need the money, how much you need, your health, your family’s plans and what else is open to you. Downsizing, a retirement interest-only mortgage, savings or family help may do the job at a lower long-term cost. That’s why advice comes before any application.
The two main types
Use the calculator below for a broad estimate based on your age, property value and any mortgage. Then speak to an adviser to check what may be available.
Start here
Tell us about your home and we will estimate what may be possible.
This is not advice or a guaranteed offer. Instead, it gives a broad guide based on your age, estimated property value and any mortgage you may need to repay.
Your details.
Complete the fields below and click calculate. Then, the card will flip over to show your estimated result.
Your guide result
Your estimated release could be around £0.
This is a guide figure only. A proper recommendation should consider your circumstances, goals, alternatives, risks and lender criteria.
This estimate is based on the information entered. It is not a mortgage offer or financial advice.
How our advice works
Clear advice, not pressure.
We start with what you’re trying to achieve, not with a product. A recommendation is only made if equity release appears suitable after we’ve looked at your wider circumstances. Family members are welcome to join any of these conversations if you’d like them there. It’s your choice.
1. A first conversation
We talk through your home, any existing mortgage, your income, your health, your family and what the money is for. There’s no charge and no obligation to go ahead.
2. Comparing your options
We look at equity release alongside the alternatives, including downsizing, remortgaging, a retirement interest-only mortgage, savings and family support. If another route looks better, we’ll tell you.
3. Explaining the figures
If equity release is worth exploring, we explain how the balance may grow, the fees, early repayment charges, the effect on inheritance and any effect on benefits. You get a personalised illustration showing the figures for a specific plan.
4. Recommendation and completion
If a plan is suitable, we recommend it in writing and explain why, then manage the application with the lender, valuer and your solicitor. Your own solicitor gives you independent legal advice before you sign.
Trust and safeguards
What Council standards mean for you.
Plans that meet Equity Release Council standards include important protections. We explain each one, and what it means for you, before any recommendation.
Key safeguards to understand
Important: the Equity Release Council is a trade body, not the regulator. Lifetime mortgage advice is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Equity release may reduce the value of your estate and may affect entitlement to means-tested benefits.
Read about protectionBefore making a decision
The risks, stated plainly.
Equity release is a long-term commitment, and the downsides are real. These are the points to understand before you go any further.
The balance can grow quickly.
If you don’t make payments, interest is added to the loan and then charged on the larger balance. Over 15 or 20 years the amount owed can increase significantly.
It reduces what you leave behind.
The loan is repaid from your home, so there will be less for your family.
It may affect benefits.
Money you release and keep could reduce entitlement to means-tested benefits such as Pension Credit or Council Tax Reduction.
Repaying early can be expensive.
Early repayment charges can apply if you repay the plan in full in the early years, outside any exemptions.
It can limit future choices.
Borrowing more later, or moving to a property the lender won’t accept, may not be possible.
We go through each one.
Before any recommendation, we explain every risk in plain English and check whether another route would suit you better.
Important: equity release will reduce the value of your estate and may affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits. Always take regulated equity release advice before making a decision.
Before you decide
Alternatives to compare first.
Equity release isn’t the only way to unlock money from your home. Depending on your circumstances, these may cost less overall.
Move to a smaller or cheaper home
Selling and buying somewhere smaller can release money without borrowing, though moving has its own costs and upheaval.
A retirement interest-only mortgage
You pay the interest each month and the loan is repaid when the home is sold. Lenders check you can afford the payments.
Remortgaging or a further advance
If your income supports the payments, a standard mortgage or further advance may cost less overall.
Savings, pensions or investments
Money you already hold may meet the need without borrowing against your home. Take advice on the tax and income effects.
Help from family, or unclaimed support
Family help, or benefits and grants you aren’t claiming, may reduce or remove the need to borrow.
All the alternatives in one place
Part of our advice is checking these properly. Our guide sets out each option side by side.
Start with the calculator, then speak to The Mortgage Hive. There’s no adviser fee and no obligation to go ahead.
Find the right guide
Choose your next step.
Go straight to the part of the decision that matters most to you.
Find out what you could release
Understand how the plans work
Check the costs
Think about your family and benefits
Compare other options
Talk to an adviser
How equity release may be used
Why homeowners consider equity release.
Equity release can be used for many reasons, but the reason matters. For example, using it for home improvements is different from using it to clear borrowing or gift money to family. Therefore, a good adviser should check whether the amount, timing and alternatives make sense before recommending anything.
Enjoying retirement
Some homeowners use equity release to improve retirement income, fund plans or create more flexibility in later life.
- Supplementing retirement income
- Funding travel or lifestyle plans
- Creating a cash reserve
Home improvements
Equity release may help fund repairs, adaptations, a new kitchen, accessibility changes or improvements that make the home more suitable in later life.
- Essential repairs
- Bathroom or kitchen upgrades
- Accessibility adaptations
- Energy-efficiency improvements
Helping family
Some people want to help children or grandchildren with a deposit, support costs or gift money earlier. This needs careful family, inheritance and legal consideration.
- Gifted deposits
- Early inheritance
- Family conversations
- Future care needs
Clearing borrowing
Some homeowners look at equity release to repay an existing mortgage, loans or credit commitments. This needs careful advice because replacing one debt with another can have long-term consequences.
- Repaying an interest-only mortgage
- Reducing monthly commitments
- Understanding long-term interest roll-up
Later-life lending providers
We compare leading equity release lenders.
The right lifetime mortgage lender can depend on your age, property, loan amount, health, repayment preferences, drawdown needs and whether you want features such as inheritance protection.
Provider access, explained properly.
Logos are useful, but suitability is what matters. Therefore, we look at the full picture before deciding whether any plan is appropriate.
Important: lender access, products, rates and criteria can change. These logos are examples of providers that may be considered. Not every lender or plan will be suitable for every client, and a recommendation should only be made after full advice.
Featured equity release insights
Start with the most useful equity release insights.
Explore selected guides, articles and updates covering suitability, lifetime mortgages, costs, inheritance, alternatives and later-life lending decisions.
Suitability
Guide
Is Equity Release a Good Idea in 2026?
Pros, cons, risks and alternatives
A balanced guide to when equity release may help, when it may not, and what to check before advice.
Read insight
Lifetime mortgage
Guide
How Does a Lifetime Mortgage Work?
A plain-English guide for homeowners over 55
Understand ownership, interest roll-up, drawdown, repayments and what happens later.
Read insight
Calculator
Guide
How Much Equity Release Can I Get?
Age, property value and health explained
Learn what affects the amount available and why lender criteria can vary.
Read insight
Costs
Guide
Equity Release Interest Rates
What you really need to know
Review interest, fees, long-term projections, repayments and early repayment charges.
Read insight
Family impact
Guide
Equity Release and Inheritance
What happens to your family and estate?
Understand estate impact, beneficiaries, family conversations and inheritance protection.
Read insight
Alternatives
Guide
Alternatives to Equity Release
Downsizing, RIO mortgages and family support
Compare the main routes before deciding whether equity release should be explored.
Read insightStill have a question? Talk it through.
If the guides don’t answer it, speak to an adviser. There’s no adviser fee and no obligation to go ahead.
Common questions
Equity release questions, answered.
These answers are general information. A recommendation can only be made after your circumstances and the alternatives have been assessed.
Do you charge for equity release advice?
No. We don’t charge an adviser fee for equity release advice. A plan will normally have its own costs, such as lender, valuation and legal fees. Some lenders cover part of these. All costs are shown in your personalised illustration before you decide, and you’re under no obligation to go ahead.
How old do I need to be for equity release?
Most lifetime mortgages are available from age 55. With joint applications, lenders usually base this on the younger homeowner. The older you are, the more you can normally release, because lenders take your age into account when setting the maximum loan. Home reversion plans often have a higher minimum age.
How much can I release?
It depends mainly on your age, the value of your home and, for some plans, your health and lifestyle. Lenders also look at property type and condition. Our calculator gives a guide figure in under a minute, and advice confirms what’s actually available from suitable lenders.
Is equity release safe?
Equity release is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Plans meeting Equity Release Council standards include a no negative equity guarantee and the right to remain in your home for life, subject to the plan’s terms. It’s still a long-term commitment with real costs, so it needs advice first.
Can my family be involved?
Yes, if you’d like them to be. Many clients bring a son, daughter or other relative to meetings. It helps everyone understand the effect on inheritance. The decision remains yours, and you can also take advice on your own.
How long does equity release take?
It often takes six to eight weeks from application to completion, though it can be longer. The main stages are advice, application, valuation and legal work. Delays usually come from property issues, an existing mortgage that needs clearing or solicitor queries. We’ll keep you updated at each stage.
Next step
Talk it through before you decide.
Speak to an equity release adviser at The Mortgage Hive. There’s no adviser fee and no obligation to go ahead.
Important information: Equity release includes lifetime mortgages and home reversion plans. To understand the features and risks, ask for a personalised illustration. Equity release will reduce the value of your estate and may affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits. A lifetime mortgage is secured against your home. The Mortgage Hive does not charge an adviser fee; lender, valuation and legal costs may apply. This page is general information, not personal advice.