Over-65s see average property value rise £26,000 this year

Retired home owners have gained an average of £26,000 tax-free this year from their houses, new analysis from an over-55s financial specialist firm, Key Retirement, has revealed. 

Total property wealth owned by over-65s who have paid off their mortgages grew to a new record high of £1.031 trillion in the past three months with average pensioner homeowners gaining more than £2,300 a month since January.

More than £114 billion has been added to the property wealth of the UK’s over-65 homeowners since the start of the year as the housing market continues to expand.

Since Key started analysing over-65s housing wealth in 2010 total pensioner property wealth has increased by around 34 per cent or £266 billion, which is worth around £60,300 on average for every homeowner. 

Owning a home has been worth around £9,300 a year for over-65s.

Key’s Pensioner Property Index shows only Scottish over-65s suffered falls in the value of their total property wealth in the past three months with all other areas recording strong growth – Londoners made £15,445 each while homeowners in the South West were around £6,275 better off. 

The overall growth in property wealth underlines the growing role investing in homes is playing in retirement and is helping drive the expansion of the equity release market with customers benefiting from record low rates. 

Average equity release customers are taking out £75,900 in property wealth rising to £135,886 in London.