Chadwick’s
c Independent Financial Advisers
Equity Release
Contents
Chadwick’s IFA
Equity Release Page 5
Lifetime Mortgages Page 6
Home Reversion Schemes Page 7
Considerations Pages 8&9
Safe Guards Page 10
Page 4
Welcome to Chadwick’s IFA
Based in Chester and established in 1997 Chadwick’s IFA have a wealth of experience in retirement planning advice.
We are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
Equity Release can be a complex area of planning and we believe that advisers working in this area should have a wide range of financial planning experience in order to provide the right advice.
How much does it cost?
We only receive our fee on successful completion of your mortgage or home reversion plan. We do not make a charge for initial discussions, fact finding or when we send you our recommendation report.
We charge a fee of £500 on completion of an Equity Release mortgage. We may also receive a commission from the lender which is disclosed in the Key Facts Illustration which we send to you.
Alternatively, we offer a fee only option. This is 2% of the advance, with a minimum of £500. The lenders commission will be refunded to you on completion.
All our advisers working in our Equity Release division have wide experience of the following areas:
• Investment Planning
• Pensions
• Tax advice
• Inheritance Tax Planning
• State Benefit Entitlements
In addition, the Financial Services Authority requires all advisers advising on Equity Release to hold a relevant qualification and all Chadwick’s IFA Equity Release advisers hold this qualification.
Page 5
About Equity Release
The Equity in your property is the difference between the open Market value and any mortgage or other loan secured on the property.
Lenders who operate in the Equity Release market allow you to release a percentage of the equity in your property to generate a lump sum or an income or both. You need to be over 55 and own your own home.
Range of Schemes
A wide range of lenders and schemes are available to Chadwick’s IFA, currently 25 lenders and 47 schemes, each with different terms and conditions.
Quality Independent Financial Advice from Chadwick’s IFA can help you to choose the lender and
scheme which best suits your circumstances.
Types of Equity Release
The two main types of Equity Release schemes available are Lifetime Mortgages and Home Reversion Plans.
Both types of plan allow you to:
• Spend the money released as you wish
• Stay in your own home for life
• Make no regular repayments if you choose Research shows that people use the proceeds for a wide range of purposes including;
• Home improvements
• Increasing income
• Healthcare / long-term care
• Buying a car
• Holidays
• Luxury purchases
• Inheritance tax planning
• Paying off debts
• Helping family members
Lifetime Mortgages
Interest Only Mortgage
With an interest only mortgage, you can take out a loan against the value of your house. You recieve a lump sum and you have to make regular payments on the amount borrowed. The Interest payments may be fixed or variable and you will not have to repay the capital until your death or when you sell your home. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
Drawdown Lifetime Mortgages
With a drawdown mortgage instead of taking the amount you borrow up front as a single lump sum you draw a smaller amount initially and then further amounts when required.
This has the advantage that as smaller amounts are taken only when needed, the debt builds up more gradually than if you take the whole lump sum at the start.
Roll-up Mortgages
With a roll-up mortgage you take out a loan against the value of your home. The lender gives you a lump sum or monthly income (or sometimes both). You do not have to make any repayments of interest or capital until you sell your home. The interest is ‘rolled-up’ and added to the total loan and the amount borrowed plus the rolled-up interest are repaid when your home is sold. The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the value of your home and the lender’s criteria. Clearly, it could be possible for the mortgage plus the rolled-up interest to exceed the value of your home possibly creating a debt on your estate. For this reason it is important to choose a scheme which carries a ‘no negative equity guarantee’.
All ‘SHIP’ schemes carry this guarantee. See Safeguards for more information.
Some lenders offer fixed interest rates to protect against possible future interest rate rises. With a fixed rate the rate of the interest roll-up can be calculated in advance so you can see how the outstanding loan will build up.
Page 7
Home Reversion Schemes
Home Reversion Schemes require you to sell all or part of your home to a reversion company. You receive a cash sum or a monthly income and you can remain in your home for the rest of your life. The reversion company will charge a nominal monthly rent.
When the property is sold, usually on death or a permanent move to a care home, the reversion company receives all or part of the proceeds of the sale, depending on what share of your home you sold.
For example if you sold a 40% share of your home, you will receive a lump sum significantly less than 40%, but the reversion company will receive 40% of the proceeds when it is sold. The smaller the part of your home you sell to the reversion company, the smaller the lump sum or income you receive.
If your home increases in value in future, you may be able to take further cash advances.
If you continue to own a part of your house, your heirs will benefit from any increase in it’s value when your home is eventually sold.
When you sell all or part of your home to a reversion company you will only receive a proportion of the open market value. This is because the reversion company gives you the right to live in your home for the rest of your life. The proportion you receive depends on your age and gender.
A particular advantage of a home reversion scheme is it may be the best way of releasing the maximum cash sum.
A disadvantage is that if you die soon after taking out a plan, you may effectively have sold your house (or part of it) cheaply.
Considerations
Other options to consider
There are a wide variety of options which you should consider carefully before choosing the Equity Release route. Some of these are set out below:
• You may have other investments or assets which could be deployed to meet your aims. We can help you
• to consider your options.
• You may be entitled to state benefits or grants, particularly if you are on a low income. These include
• Pension Credit, Income Support, Council Tax Benefit and Attendance Allowance.
• You could consider moving to a smaller property or sheltered accommodation and use the money released
• by selling your home to meet your aims.
• If you are in debt you could get advice from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau.
• If you need repairs or adaptations to your home you may be able to get help from your Local Authority.
Ongoing costs
You will be responsible for repairing and insuring the building. Your home must continue to be maintained to a reasonable standard.
Lender Conditions
These vary considerably from lender to lender, but may include the following:
• Minimum age usually 55 or 60
• Maximum loan is age dependent
• You must own your own home
• Any existing mortgage to be redeemed
• Minimum borrowing e.g. £10,000 Often, the property needs to be freehold and constructed using cement or bricks.
Costs
The particular fees for the scheme in which you wish to apply are set out in the Key Facts Illustration. They may include the following:
• Arrangement or application fees
• Valuation fees
• Solicitor fees
• Early repayment charges
• Financial advice
Page 9
Considerations Continued...
Moving Home
In future, you may wish to move to a smaller property and you should check that the Equity Release mortgage is portable. If you can move the mortgage to a smaller property of lower value you may need to repay part of the mortgage from the proceeds of your house sale. Check you can do this without penalty.
Changes in Circumstances
You should be aware that if someone comes to live with you such as a younger carer, the scheme would still come to an end on your death and the house would probably have to be sold. In addition you would need permission from the scheme provider for someone to come and live with you.
Life Expectancy
If your life expectancy is low it could be beneficial to consider a scheme which has capital protection in the event of early death. If you are using Equity Release to generate an income and your life expectancy is low, we can help you investigate impaired life annuities which may provide you with a higher income than a conventional annuity.
State Benefits
If you use an Equity Release scheme to generate an income and you are in receipt of Pension Credit, Income Support or Council Tax Benefit for example, you may lose all or some of your benefits. We can check your entitlement if you are in this position.
Taxation
A lump sum released from your home will be tax free but an income raised through an annuity may increase your income tax. If your estate is liable to Inheritance Tax, Equity Release may reduce or remove the tax.
Family Members
An Equity Release Scheme is likely to considerably reduce the size of your estate left to your heirs. You should consider discussing your plans with your family.
Safeguards
In the 1980’s Equity Release schemes earned some deserved bad publicity. However from 31st October 2004 all lifetime mortgages became regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
From the 6th April 2007 home reversion schemes have also become regulated when you see an adviser.
You can choose whether to receive advice or just information. If you take advice and the product is unsuitable you may have grounds for complaint.
Whereas when you just take information, if you choose the wrong product, you cannot complain.
FSA Factsheet
The FSA have produced a valuable Factsheet entitled “Raising money from your home” which you can download from our website. Part of the rules of regulation includes the Key Facts Illustration, which must be issued to you for each scheme you are considering. This is an important document, which you should read carefully. It must be produced in a standard format, which helps you to compare different schemes.
Safe Home Income Plans (SHIP)
SHIP was established in 1991 by a group of providers of Equity Release products. Today many providers are members of SHIP and they must observe the four commitments of the SHIP code of practice;
1. The members of SHIP agree to provide fair, simple and complete presentation of their plans.
2. The client’s legal work will always by performed by a solicitor of their choice.
3. The SHIP certificate will clearly state the main cost to the householder’s assets and estate.
4. All SHIP plans carry a ‘no negative equity’ guarantee i.e. you will never owe more than the value of 4.your home
Chadwick’s IFA only ever recommended the products and service of SHIP members.
You should always ask for a personalised illustration to understand the features and risks of the scheme you are considering
Chadwick’s Independent Financial Advisers
Chadwick’s Independent Financial Advisers 1st Floor, Pulford House
Bell Meadow Business Park Park Lane, Pulford
Chester CH4 9DG
Tel: 0844 800 6697 Fax: 01244 317 222 [email protected]
www.chadwicksifa.com