Ill-health equity release launched

The specialist retirement solutions provider has launched the product for owners aged 60 and over whose property is worth at least £70,000.

There is a fixed annual equivalent interest rate currently set at 7.65%. The overall cost for comparison is 7.7% typical.

Partnership says that the minimum cash release for the mortgage is £25,000 and Partnership will not charge homeowners a fee for valuation, application or completion when they take out the product.

The free to enter proposition is designed to remove a barrier to sale and remove concerns amongst those consumers about committing funds to equity release if they do not take it up.

Partnership includes a no negative equity guarantee as standard with the enhanced lifetime mortgage, which the provider claims will allay client fears about taking out an equity release mortgage on a property which then becomes worth less than the value of the mortgage.

Ged Hosty, managing director of equity release at Partnership, said: “There was a need in the market for innovation to stimulate growth after a period of falling sales. We already know that equity release provides a much needed source for income for people in retirement who find themselves without adequate pension provision but have substantial equity in their properties.

“Partnership has refined this product to benefit those with compromised health conditions. The enhanced lifetime mortgage will provide terms for homeowners with qualifying conditions or circumstances and a simplified underwriting process means that a short list of medical questions can be completed online in minutes to confirm eligibility.

“During the credit crisis we saw many more people using their equity release to pay off their debts, and this is a trend that is continuing.

“As many younger people are increasingly facing unprecedented debt and have to meet the costs of funding their university education or getting on the housing ladder, pensioners who can access this income clearly feel they can play a useful role to help their families.”