Equity Release Supermarket has reported that its applications to lenders rose by 10%, and by 15% in value, in the third quarter of 2019.
The firm surpassed figures provided by the Equity Release Council for Q3, which showed equity release products provide £988m of funding to over-55 homeowners in Q3, up by 8% from £911m in Q2.
Equity Release Supermarket also witnessed growth in the number of new plans sold, increasing by 8% and up 18% in value
Its average case value also increased by 10% quarter on quarter.
Mark Gregory, founder and CEO of Equity Release Supermarket, said: “We’re actually seeing a newfound interest from high-net-worth (HNW) individuals and a rise in the number of HNWs opting for equity release, which has created a driving force in the uplift we’ve experienced.
“Given that rates have fallen below 3%, equity release is now a viable alternative to other forms of lending for this market segment. Hence, HNWs are realising the benefit of using equity release as an opportunity to release a sizeable cash lump sum in order to boost their retirement finances.
“Lifetime mortgages also offer a number of features that make them an attractive borrowing option for the HNW individual. The money released is tax-free, there are no credit or affordability checks to pass and rates which are fixed for life – are at an historical low. These lifetime mortgage balances can therefore be effectively managed or reduced through combining an interest-only plan with the voluntary payment feature.
“It was reported earlier this year that the London market retracted from 10% to 8% YOY and given that property values in London are 103% of the national average, this undoubtedly affected total lending.
“We’ve witnessed a return of the London market and our total case values in London have increased by 33% quarter on quarter – 10% above the national average.
“We believe this is partly down to the attractive low interest rates and also in part due to an anecdotal desire to ‘get business done’ before the Brexit outcome.”