Yorkshire equity release – market report

All the information you need for equity release in Yorkshire

Written in line with our editorial policy.

In this report, we review how property prices over the last ten years have fuelled a 26% growth in the northern and Yorkshire equity release market. We’ll also take a closer look at the impact of rising property prices – and how much more tax-free cash you may now be able to release if you’re a homeowner in Yorkshire.

The figures are in for the equity release market’s performance in 2022 and they reveal the industry has fared especially well. Its continued growth last year saw a record-breaking 93,421 new and returning customers unlock £6.2billion of their property wealth, according to Equity Release Council figures.  

Record average house prices achieved in recent months is no doubt a contributing factor. In the last three years alone, homeowners in Yorkshire have enjoyed a staggering 25% increase to their average house price. It means thousands of homeowners across the county are likely to have significantly more equity in their properties than when they purchased them.

In this article we’ll explore the latest trends for equity release in Yorkshire, including:

• What is involved in equity release?
• Average Yorkshire house value rises £85k in ten years.
• What does the house price boom mean for Yorkshire equity release potential?
• Growth in the Yorkshire equity release market.
• Do Yorkshire Bank offer equity release?
• Will slowing property prices affect the Yorkshire equity release market?
• Find out more about Yorkshire equity release.

What is involved in equity release?

Before we take you through our equity release Yorkshire market report, let’s recap what equity release is and how it works. An equity release plan allows homeowners aged 55+ to unlock a percentage of their home’s value without having to sell up, move house or arrange a remortgage. The tax-free cash unlocked can be spent in any way the homeowner wishes.

A lifetime mortgage is the most popular type of equity release plan and is available as a lump sum or drawdown plan.

One of the biggest draws for Yorkshire equity release customers is that there are no mandatory monthly payments. In fact, any payments made to service the interest are entirely voluntary. This is because the loan plus interest rolls up each month and doesn’t have to be repaid until the homeowners have passed away or moved into long-term care. The repayment is funded by the sale of the property.

Prospective Yorkshire equity release customers may already be aware that they have a strong potential to release the tax-free cash needed to boost their finances. As we’ll be discussing in this report, they are likely to have much more equity than they did just a few years ago. 

Looking for a Yorkshire equity release company? Our selected advisers cover the UK and can provide you with all the information and quotes you need from the comfort of your own home. Call us on 0808 178 3055 or request a call back and we’ll arrange a no-obligation appointment for you. Alternatively, check your eligibility and get an initial indication of how much tax-free cash you could unlock.

Average Yorkshire house value rises £85k in ten years

When your available equity is calculated, the value of your property is one of the main deciding factors. This will determine how much tax-free money you can unlock with an equity release plan. The higher your property is worth, the more cash you could potentially unlock. 

With that in mind, our analysis of equity release in Yorkshire begins with a breakdown of property prices in the region over the last decade.

It’s a well-known fact that UK house prices have risen significantly over the last decade. Many homeowners in and approaching retirement will have owned their home for some years now and are likely to have benefitted substantially in that time. 

The below table shows how the average home in Yorkshire has increased since 2012, compared to the average house price in the UK:

SOURCE: Land Registry House Price Statistics in Yorkshire and the Humber Dec 2012 – Dec 2022.

To sum up the numbers in the above table, the average house price in Yorkshire rose by £85,072 in the last decade – a growth of 49%.

In 2021 alone, £1million was added to the UK’s housing market every single minute according to the Equity Release Council. The good news is that despite the economic uncertainty we saw in 2022, house prices continued to increase. In Yorkshire, the average house price rose from £192,153 in Dec 2021 to £214,773 in Dec 2022 – a staggering £22,620 in just 12 months.

Owners of detached houses in Yorkshire saw the biggest monetary rise in property prices in the 12 months leading up to Dec 2022, but similar increases were also seen on other property types:

• Detached properties in Yorkshire rose to an average value of £353,145 – that’s a 11.4% growth in one year. 
• Semi-detached houses increased by 11.7% annually to £215,493 – the largest percentage increase.
• Terraced properties also enjoyed house price increases of 10.5% over the year, taking them to £169,548.

The figures are even better when reviewing prices of houses that have been put up for sale in Yorkshire in the last year. According to RightMove, properties listed on their site across Yorkshire had an average price of £233,978 in the last 12 months. Interestingly, the majority of sales during this time were semi-detached houses, which sold for an average price of £228,241.

According to the York Press in Dec 2022, the average house price specifically in the city of York was a huge £329,398. The average sale price of properties there rose by £31,000 in the last 12 months. 

The most expensive properties in Yorkshire and the Humber, however, are found in Harrogate. Here the average home will set you back £348,000. Such is the divide between Harrogate and the county’s lowest average priced region, that the average property costs a staggering 2.5 times more in Harrogate than in Hull.

What does the house price boom mean for Yorkshire equity release potential?

The boom in house prices in recent years means that later life homeowners in Yorkshire potentially have a huge amount of equity sitting in their homes. But how much equity can homeowners in Yorkshire unlock?

Equity release plans typically allow homeowners to unlock between 20-60% of their property’s value. Exactly how much you can release depends on your age (the older you are the more you can unlock), property type and location of their home. Health is also taken into account, with some qualifying conditions entitling the homeowner to a higher cash release.

Here, we take a look at how much equity a typical 74-year-old living in Yorkshire might have been able to free up from their home with an equity release plan over the last ten years:

(These are example figures based on a 74-year-old releasing 40% of the total value of their home with a standard plan.)

The 74-year-old we’ve based these figures on could potentially unlock £22,535 more than they could have done just five years ago. Furthermore, they could potentially now access a huge £34,029 extra tax-free cash than a decade ago, simply for owning their home.

The growth in Yorkshire’s equity release market

With such a growth in equity for homeowners across Yorkshire, it’s easy to see why so many are now choosing to tap into the extra funds. From home improvements and holidays, to help with paying bills and paying off the mortgage; equity release offers a solution for those who may otherwise be struggling to make ends meet.

The end-of-year figures compiled for the Equity Release Council’s Autumn 2022 Market Report demonstrates the popularity of equity release in Yorkshire. In 2021, almost one in five (18%) of new equity release plans in the UK were in Yorkshire and northern regions. This compares to 11% across the whole of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

It also reveals that between the years 2017-2021 there was a 26% increase in the number of equity release plans specifically arranged in Yorkshire.

In addition to booming house prices, the equity release industry is likely to be reaping the benefits of its recent efforts to offer more flexibility and choice. There are now hundreds of plans to choose from, with many new plans and product features offering flexible interest-reducing options.

For instance, since March 2022, all new equity release plans allow customers to make voluntary partial repayments on plans to reduce interest. Some plans allow customers to repay up to 10% of the overall loan each year penalty-free. It means Yorkshire homeowners could effectively pay off the whole plan in as little as ten years.

Does Yorkshire Bank offer equity release?

You might be wondering if Yorkshire Bank equity release plans are available – the answer is no, Yorkshire Bank does not offer this type of retirement lending. They do however offer other types of mortgage products.

If you are considering equity release, Yorkshire homeowners can call Equity Release Wise for an unbeatable service. Our team will be happy to answer any initial questions you have about unlocking the tax-free money from your home. From there, they can connect you to one of our selected equity release advisers to run some quotations for you. 

At Equity Release Wise, all the advice, information and quotes are provided entirely free of charge. Only if you choose to go ahead with a plan is there a fee for advice, which can be paid from the money you release. 

Better still, if you’re looking for an equity release company in Yorkshire, we can help you to arrange a plan from the comfort of your own home. It really couldn’t be easier.

Find out if you’re eligible for a plan and how much you could unlock by using our free equity release calculator. Alternatively you can call 0808 178 3055 or  request a call back at a time that suits you.

Will slowing house prices affect the Yorkshire equity release market?

Despite gloomy forecasts of a drop in house prices by as much as 10% in 2023, houses across Yorkshire and the rest of the UK are likely to remain far higher in value than what they were ten years ago. 

Early figures released in January 2023 by the Equity Release Council indicate that demand amongst customers did slow slightly towards the end of 2022. However, this is more likely to do with September’s mini-Budget, rather than any forecasted drop in property prices.

Despite the drop, the equity release market remains twice the size that it was in 2017. Furthermore, 2022 remained a record-breaking year for the industry, with 23% more customers year-on-year.

What will happen to house prices and the economy in the future is yet to be seen. For now, properties continue to be worth tens of thousands of pounds more than a decade ago. As a result, Yorkshire’s equity release customers potentially have access to much more tax-free equity than they might have previously achieved.

Find out more about Yorkshire equity release

Anybody thinking about unlocking some of their property wealth should seek the guidance of a qualified equity release adviser who is free to tell you if a plan is right for you or not.

The good news is, you don’t need to scour the internet for a reputable equity release company. Yorkshire homeowners can quickly and easily get in touch with the team at Equity Release Wise and our friendly team of selected advisers, who are specialists in equity release. Yorkshire homeowners can explore all options, ask any questions you might have and gather all the quotations needed without any pressure or obligation to proceed. 

In fact, you’ll only be charged a fee for advice if you choose to go ahead with your recommended plan. This is usually paid from the money that you unlock. 

Find out if you qualify for an equity release plan and how much you could release by speaking to Equity Release Wise today. Our selected advisers can search for the best deals for you in just a few minutes. Call us on 0808 178 3055 or request a call back and we’ll arrange a no-obligation appointment for you. Alternatively, check your eligibility and get an initial indication of how much tax-free cash you could unlock.