Equity Release could save women’s delayed retirement dreams

Published: 11/07/2011

We’re all familiar with the carrot and stick idiom; the tale of how a donkey was coaxed into pulling a cart by dangling a carrot on a stick just out of reach. It’s even being used on the latest ING Direct advert.

Many 50 – 53 year old women are feeling that frustration after government proposal for further increases to the State Pension Age (SPA). The current SPA for women is already rising from 60 to 65 but these new proposals not only suggest the increase should be implemented more quickly, they also wish to increase it to 66 by April 2020¹.

Having been daydreaming about their approaching retirement, 20 per cent of females² could now have to wait, and work for, an extra five years minimum before they can receive their State Pension.

Retirement dreams don’t have to suffer

Equity Release could help you achieve your retirement plans, even with the current and proposed SPA increases. An Equity Release plan is a way to release money from your property whilst retaining the right to live there. You can receive the money from a one off lump sum payment, or from a series of individual drawdowns from a designated cash reserve as and when you need it.

However taking out an Equity Release plan should not be a knee-jerk decision, made out of frustration at the government’s proposals.

An Equity Release plan requires not only professional financial advice from a qualified Equity Release adviser, but also a specialist Equity Release solicitor to explain the legal nature, effects and implications an Equity Release plan could have.

Goldsmith Williams specialise in Equity Release. We are a founding member of the Equity Release Solicitor’s Alliance (ERSA) and our dedicated GWLifetime team are here to help. We can also refer you to a panel of professional financial advisers.

Sources
¹DirectGov
²Key Retirement Solutions (June 2011)

Content correct at time of publication