Need to release equity, quickly? Here are all the options.
Lifetime mortgage, remortgage, secured loan, retirement mortgage, bridging, or selling up. Plain English on what each one is, how fast it is, what it costs and how much you could get. Then, when you are ready, a free introduction to a qualified adviser.
- Free to use, no obligation
- FCA-authorised advisers only
- Free PDF guides
From "I need some money out of the house" to money in the bank.
Most people jump straight to one product because it was advertised at them. The right order is options first, numbers second, adviser third.
See your options
Seven ways to turn bricks into cash, from a further advance to a lifetime mortgage. Which are fast, which are cheap, which are for you.
Read more →Check the numbers
How much you could release at your age, what it would cost over time, and what a monthly-payment option would look like instead.
Read more →Talk to an adviser
A qualified, FCA-authorised equity release adviser looks at your situation and every lender. First conversation is free.
Read more →Money in the bank
Application, valuation, your own solicitor, completion. Four to eight weeks for a lifetime mortgage; quicker for some options.
Read more →Seven ways to release equity, and how fast each one is.
"Equity release" usually means a lifetime mortgage, but it is not the only way, and not always the best. Here is the whole menu.
Lifetime mortgage
The main form of equity release. A loan against your home with no monthly payments needed; interest rolls up and it is repaid when you die or move into long-term care. Tax-free cash, you keep ownership, and you can never owe more than the home is worth.
How it works →Remortgage or further advance
Borrow more on an ordinary mortgage, from your current lender (fastest) or a new one. Cheapest option if you can afford the monthly payments and pass the affordability checks. Lenders lend to 70, 75 or later.
How it works →Secured loan (second charge)
A separate loan secured on your home behind your existing mortgage. Quicker than a remortgage and leaves a good fixed rate untouched, but dearer, and you pay it back monthly.
How it works →Retirement interest-only mortgage
Halfway house: you pay the interest every month so the debt never grows, and the loan is repaid when you die or go into care. Needs proof you can afford the payments, for life.
How it works →Bridging loan
The fastest money there is, and the most expensive. Only sensible for a short gap with a clear way to repay: a sale going through, a remortgage in progress, an inheritance due.
How it works →Home reversion plan
Sell part or all of your home to a provider for a lump sum well below market value, and live there rent-free for life. Certainty about what the family inherits, at a high price. Rare now.
How it works →Sell up or downsize
Release the lot by moving to a cheaper home. Slowest, most disruptive, but no interest and no debt. Our sister site covers it in depth.
How it works →Not sure which one? Answer six questions.
Your age, your home, how much you need, how fast, and whether monthly payments are realistic. The questionnaire tells you which option fits and why, and which to rule out. Nothing is sent anywhere unless you ask for the guides or an adviser.
- Youngest homeowner is 55 or over
- Home worth £250,000, mortgage of £40,000 left
- Need around £60,000
- Within the next two months
- Monthly payments would be a stretch
- Leaving an inheritance matters, but not above everything
→ Lifetime mortgage looks like the fit. Consider a drawdown plan. Ask about paying some interest.
- Decide what the money is for, and how much
- Get a redemption figure from your current lender
- Free first appointment with a qualified adviser
- Personalised illustration: check the rate and the ERC
- Application and valuation (usually free)
- Your own solicitor: the paperwork and the signing
- Completion: money in your account
Six free PDFs, including all the options on one page.
Printable, plain English, written for the kitchen table. All the options compared, the self-check, the how-much worksheet, the fast-track checklist, twenty questions to ask an adviser, and the family and inheritance guide.
Free. We ask for your email so we can send them. Nobody phones you unless you ask.
The questions people ask first.
How fast can it be done?
Realistic timescales for each option, what causes delays, and the six things that make it quicker.
Read →How much could I release?
The age table lenders use, what health does to it, and what you are left with after a mortgage is cleared.
Read →What it really costs
Set-up fees, the interest rate, and what rolling up does to £50,000 over ten, fifteen and twenty years.
Read →The pros and the cons
Honestly. What people are glad of, what they regret, and the questions that would have caught it.
Read →Equity release and inheritance
What the family gets, inheritance protection, and why some people release equity to reduce a tax bill.
Read →Questions to ask an adviser
Twenty questions, and the answers you want to hear. Take them to the first appointment.
Read →Straight answers
What is the fastest way to release equity from my home?
If you can afford monthly payments, a further advance from your existing lender can be done in one to three weeks. A secured loan takes two to four. A lifetime mortgage (equity release proper, for over-55s, no monthly payments) normally takes four to eight weeks from the first advice appointment to the money arriving; four is possible if everyone moves quickly. A bridging loan can be days, but it is expensive and only for a short gap.
How much equity can I release?
With a lifetime mortgage it depends mostly on your age: very roughly 20% to 25% of the home's value at 55, rising to around 50% by 80. Poor health can increase it. Any existing mortgage must be repaid out of the money first. The calculator gives you a figure in seconds; an adviser will give you an exact one.
Do I have to make monthly payments?
Not with a lifetime mortgage or home reversion plan. The interest on a lifetime mortgage rolls up and is repaid, with the loan, when the home is eventually sold. You can choose to pay some or all of the interest to stop the debt growing, and most plans let you repay up to 10% a year without penalty. Remortgages, secured loans and retirement interest-only mortgages do need monthly payments.
Is equity release safe?
Lifetime mortgages and home reversion plans are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and can only be sold with advice from a qualified adviser. Plans that meet Equity Release Council standards come with a no-negative-equity guarantee (you can never owe more than the home is worth), the right to stay in your home for life, a fixed or capped interest rate, and the right to move house. The real risks are that the debt grows, the inheritance shrinks, and benefits can be affected. A good adviser walks you through all three.
How much does it cost to set up?
Typically £1,500 to £3,000 all in: advice (often a fixed fee of £1,000 to £1,500, sometimes nothing until completion, sometimes nothing at all), a solicitor (£600 to £1,200), and a lender fee (£0 to £700). Valuations are usually free. Most of it can be taken out of the money released. The full breakdown.
What does this website do?
Three things. It explains every way of releasing money from a home in plain English. It gives you free PDF guides and a two-minute questionnaire so you can see which option fits before you talk to anyone. And, if you want, it introduces you to an FCA-authorised equity release adviser for a free conversation. We do not give advice ourselves, and we do not charge you anything.
Ready to talk to someone who can actually do it?
We introduce you to a qualified, FCA-authorised equity release adviser who will look at every option, tell you how much you could release and how fast, and never charge you for the first conversation. No obligation.