Credit crunch fails to dampen equity release

The amount of equity release business passing through intermediaries has also increased, with less than 40% of consumers going directly to providers. This is the equivalent of around 6,000 plans moving to intermediary arrangement. Figures from KRS’s Equity Release Market Monitor also show retirees in the UK released more equity than ever before in 2007 and home reversion plans became particularly popular as the dynamics of the housing market begin to change. In total, retirees released almost £1.4bn of equity during 2007, up by almost a quarter compared with 2006 and overall demand increa...