Think of looking into Equity Release as an exercise in detailed planning. This is not a shopping trip to find the best product or the cheapest deal.
Before you do anything, you should consider who or where you are going to get advice from, and who you want to work with – just in the exploration stage.
We think you should always seek out independent advice, from a firm that has no affiliation to ‘selling’ an equity release product or solution.
The decision making process should start with an approach which asks if this is right for you, plus a clear comparison of alternatives (which could include doing nothing).
So, to meet your objectives, you should be starting from a ‘big picture’ position. What is that you are trying to achieve, what is it that you want?
You should not start by comparing Equity Release options or companies. There is a stage before this.
The exercise can be simplified into this summary:
- Find an independent expert
- Work with them to clarify your objectives and wishes, i.e. what is it you are seeking to achieve?
- Work with them to explore if Equity Release may be a suitable option for you
- Understand what alternatives may be available to an Equity Release product or solution
- Understand what benefits there are to using Equity Release, what the drawbacks and risks are
- Then, and only then, start looking at and comparing Equity Release providers and deals