Equity Release: Why the Mortgage Market Is Changing, and What It Means for You
For most of the last century, the mortgage journey followed a fairly predictable path. You bought your first home in your mid-to-late twenties, paid it off over 25 years, and entered retirement debt-free with the house as your reward for decades of hard work. That story is changing, and faster than most people realise.
According to the English Housing Survey 2024–25, the average age of first-time buyers in England is now 34, up from 32 just five years ago, with around 22% of first-time buyer loans in mid-2024 carrying terms of 35 to 40 years.
The knock-on effect is significant. Bank of England data shows that just over two in five new mortgages now have terms extending beyond the borrower's pension age, and it is estimated that over one million mortgages stretching past retirement have been issued since late 2021. Carrying a mortgage into retirement is no longer an edge case. For a growing number of people, it is simply the reality of how homeownership works in this country.
The good news is that the market is responding. The equity release sector grew 11% in 2025, reaching £2.57 billion in total lending, and people are increasingly using these products for practical reasons rather than lifestyle spending. The most common reason is to clear an existing mortgage or debt, accounting for 26% of cases according to the Equity Release Council.
Retirement Interest-Only mortgages are also gaining traction as a flexible middle ground, and the FCA has acknowledged that some rules may have unintentionally acted as barriers to people accessing the solutions they actually need.
Despite all of this, research from the Equity Release Council found that more than half of households aged 60 and over could fund a better, longer retirement by accessing their housing wealth. Yet most have never had a proper conversation about how to do it. That is the gap we need to close.
Research from the Equity Release Council found that more than half of households aged 60 and over could fund a better, longer retirement by accessing their housing wealth.
If you have a mortgage with years still to run and retirement is closer than it once felt, or you are already past your working years with debt still outstanding, there is almost certainly more you can do than you think. The earlier we talk, the more options we have to work with. Please do get in touch, I would love to help.
SPEAK TO AN ADVISER
Always seek independent regulated advice before making decisions about mortgage or equity release products. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a mortgage or any other debt secured on it. Equity release will reduce the value of your estate and may affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits.
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