SHIP (Safe Home Income Plans) which is the trade body for equity release providers said it would urge the government to create a guide covering equity release and other retirement products.
Andrea Rozario, director general of SHIP, said politicians could be playing a greater role in assisting & encouraging promotion of equity release to assist their retirement lifestyles.
She has credited political figures such as Lord Lipsey, ex-chairman of the Financial Services Consumer Panel, with helping raising the profile of the equity release products.
According to SHIP, a government guide should cover equity release as well as advice on annuities and steps on how to claim the state pension.
Ms Rozario said this would help consumers to explore the various options open to them in retirement.
She said: “It will help them navigate their way through the minefield of retirement planning.”
Research has also shown that equity release schemes are becoming even more relevant as baby boomers reached retirement.
The reasoning behind this is that attitudes to retirement are changing & this ‘new’ generation has a more ‘live for today’ rationale. With the state pension issues currently, this is another factor for this generation to consider.
Recent discussions on this topic have led to the conclusion that equity release was an “obvious solution” to allow this generation to release equity tied up their properties & thereby fund their retirement.
Unfortunately, there is still a level of misunderstanding about the equity release sector among consumers and equity release advisers & this needs to be fixed.
This is not the first time Ship has expressed a desire to work with the government on equity release.
In its July briefing, Ship called on the government to undertake a review into the role equity release can play in retirement planning.
