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“Unlocking £68,000 from our home has helped make life more comfortable”
After years of running a post office in their local town in Cornwall, Paul and Emma
Walker decided it was time to retire.
However, when it came to selling up their business, the couple unfortunately ended up losing money, leaving them in debt and with only a pension to live off.
“It was a worrying situation,” remembers Emma. “We’d lost a lot of money. We didn’t want to relocate from the home we loved, but we also knew that on our fixed pension, our income was never going to change.
“We weren’t getting any younger and with the income we were getting, we just weren’t able to save anything extra. Our bungalow needed repairs and we simply needed to find some money from somewhere.”
Then the couple saw an advert for equity release and, wondering whether it could be a solution for their financial worries, contacted Key.
“After reading all the reviews on the company, we decided to give them a call and they put us in touch with our local adviser,” explained Emma.
“He was really good. He spoke to us for a long time about our situation and explained it all to us, giving us both the upsides and the downsides to equity release. Then he left us to decide. He wasn’t pushy at all.”
The adviser made sure the Walkers considered their other options but, after discussing it, the couple decided they wanted to take a lifetime mortgage, the most popular form of equity release. Typically, with a lifetime mortgage, there are no monthly repayments to make as the loan plus roll-up interest is repaid when the plan comes to an end.
“We moved to Cornwall 16 years ago,” said Emma. “The village we’re in is perfect for us. Even if we had wanted to downsize and leave the area, our home is already quite small and we wouldn’t make a lot of money moving from it.
“So we made the decision to go ahead, releasing £68,000 from our home in order to be able to do the repairs to the bungalow. We had the property fully re-rendered, got a new garage roof, had work done to the garden, as well as a new driveway.
“My husband was also able to realise his dream and get a motorbike.
“We can’t recommend Key enough. Taking equity release has just made our life so much more comfortable.”
Things to consider:
Walker decided it was time to retire.
However, when it came to selling up their business, the couple unfortunately ended up losing money, leaving them in debt and with only a pension to live off.
“It was a worrying situation,” remembers Emma. “We’d lost a lot of money. We didn’t want to relocate from the home we loved, but we also knew that on our fixed pension, our income was never going to change.
“We weren’t getting any younger and with the income we were getting, we just weren’t able to save anything extra. Our bungalow needed repairs and we simply needed to find some money from somewhere.”
Then the couple saw an advert for equity release and, wondering whether it could be a solution for their financial worries, contacted Key.
“After reading all the reviews on the company, we decided to give them a call and they put us in touch with our local adviser,” explained Emma.
“He was really good. He spoke to us for a long time about our situation and explained it all to us, giving us both the upsides and the downsides to equity release. Then he left us to decide. He wasn’t pushy at all.”
The adviser made sure the Walkers considered their other options but, after discussing it, the couple decided they wanted to take a lifetime mortgage, the most popular form of equity release. Typically, with a lifetime mortgage, there are no monthly repayments to make as the loan plus roll-up interest is repaid when the plan comes to an end.
“We moved to Cornwall 16 years ago,” said Emma. “The village we’re in is perfect for us. Even if we had wanted to downsize and leave the area, our home is already quite small and we wouldn’t make a lot of money moving from it.
“So we made the decision to go ahead, releasing £68,000 from our home in order to be able to do the repairs to the bungalow. We had the property fully re-rendered, got a new garage roof, had work done to the garden, as well as a new driveway.
“My husband was also able to realise his dream and get a motorbike.
“We can’t recommend Key enough. Taking equity release has just made our life so much more comfortable.”
Things to consider:
- Key Equity Release offer lifetime mortgages only, which is a loan secured against your home.
- You should always think carefully before securing a loan against your home.
- You always remain the owner of your home with a lifetime mortgage.
- Key’s plans come with a no negative equity guarantee meaning you will never owe more than your home is worth.
- Equity release will reduce the value of your estate and may affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits.
- You can guarantee an inheritance with some of Key’s plans.
- All of Key’s equity release advice relates to their range of Key-branded products and our fixed advice fee of £1,299 is only payable on completion of a plan, so you can find out if it’s right for you without it costing a penny.
Page last updated: Monday 15 April 2024