Equity Release rules

Applelady

Hi i wonder if someone might be able to answer a Q I'm having trouble finding the answer to regarding equity release on former council properties...

I'm only in my 40s but my health means the likely hood of my ever working again is extremely slim & so I'm in the unenviable position of recognising that the savings i have now are all i'm ever likely to have, & living on benefits they wont last long (even with extreme frugality!). I do however own my home outright, have no dependents & dont expect to be long lived for health reasons, so after doing a bit of research on my situation/all the variables, it looks like ER might be the best way for me to supplement my income/state pension when the time comes.

But I live in an ex council property (purchased outright by relatives in the early 1990s), & am unclear whether my property would even be eligible..... all my research into ER says that 'ex council houses will need verification' but I havent been able to find out what that actually means. - Every site i look at says the same thing - "contact us/an advisor for further details". But I dont want to go through all the rigmarole of contacting/meeting a specialist ER firm if i can help it as I'm not well & it's a long way off on the horizon that i'd be doing it anyway so it'd be a waste of time & energy for all concerned.
I'd just like to know if in principle my home would qualify or not, so i can know whether I need to rule ER out.

So i just wondered if anyone here had any insight? If anyone been through the process themselves with an ex council property & could give me any pointers into what the rules are? Or even how to find out?

hopeful thanks
Applelady

ps Please dont think me rude if it's a while before i respond to any replies - being ill just typing this post has exhausted me.

dunstonh

There are no rules covering this. It is up to each lender to decide for themselves whether the property meets their criteria at that particular time.

But I dont want to go through all the rigmarole of contacting/meeting a specialist ER firm if i can help it as I'm not well & it's a long way off on the horizon that i'd be doing it anyway so it'd be a waste of time & energy for all concerned.

most equity release is not done through specialist firms. It is done via IFAs. Do, you know a local IFA that you could ask? Although say that, it probably still wouldnt help as it is not the IFA that decides but the lender. Only if the IFA knew of a property on your estate that had equity release would they be able to know the answer. That is highly unlikely.

Some ex-council builds are non-standard. e.g. concrete rather than bricks and mortar. They dont tend to like non-standard builds. The lenders tend to dislike very shabby estates where building maintenance tends to be low and damage high and resale value impacted on significantly.

badmemory

Also the sale of council houses included clauses about resale. This could be a problem for an equity release company regarding taking ownership.

Applelady

ahhhh I see. Of course. That makes much more sense now thank you dunstonh
It's a standard build bricks & mortar (1922) & is on a decent estate with at least 30% privately owned so generally maintained very well - there is a shabby/rough estate in town but thankfully that's the other side of town. They were built as part of the 'homes for heroes' project at the end of WW1 so have lots of green spaces & pretty good build houses.
So i reckon it's not out of the question that it'd be worth considering for a lender. The private owned homes that come on the market never take long to sell which is also a good sign i'd say.
So I'm imagining i may have a chance at least.
Thanks so much for taking the time to explain that to me, very helpful much appreciated

Applelady

That makes sense too badmemory thank you. I've seen the deed recently & it doesn't say anything about conditional resale & many of the private owned houses on my street have been resold at least once in the last 30yrs so hopefully there wont be a barrier where thats concerned although of course i will need to investigate further.
appreciate your taking the time to comment. many thanks:)

xylophone

https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/equity-release

http://www.justadviser.com/products/lifetime-mortgages/the-equity-release-council/

will be worth a look.