What is equity release?
With us, your home stays your own 
Happy memories in your home? Instead of having to sell it to help you get what you want from retirement, our lifetime mortgage could help you unlock cash to make new memories, in the home you love.
No need for monthly repayments 
You don't need to make monthly repayments with our lifetime mortgage - though you can, if you wish, to reduce the amount you owe. The loan is normally paid back – along with any interest that’s built up – after the sale of your home, when you die or go into long-term care.
What might you use it for? 
Taking out equity release could be a way to help pay for home improvements, give kids a leg up on the property ladder or just make your retirement a bit more comfortable. It's mostly up to you - we just need to know that you're doing it for the right reasons.
How does our equity release work?
The kind of equity release that we offer is a lifetime mortgage, which is the most common type. You may be eligible if you’re a UK homeowner aged 55 or over. A lifetime mortgage is a long-term loan secured against the value of your home. But it works differently from other types of mortgages. You’d borrow a cash lump sum, but there are no contractual monthly payments. Instead, interest builds up for as long as you have the mortgage and is charged on the total amount borrowed and the interest already added. This quickly increases the amount you owe. You can choose to make voluntary repayments to help reduce the amount you owe.
Taking out a lifetime mortgage does mean that you will leave a lower - and possibly no - inheritance from the sale of your home. It may also have a tax impact and affect whether you can still claim certain welfare benefits. Because equity release can be complicated, you need to take financial advice before deciding to go ahead.
We'd also recommend that you give our comprehensive Guide to equity release a careful read. There's plenty of information on things you need to consider before you make any decision.
The loan and any interest that’s built up is normally paid back when you (and your partner, if you’ve taken it out jointly) die or need to go into long-term care, subject to our terms and conditions. Normally money from selling your home is used to do this.
Are you eligible for our equity release?
Are you eligible for our equity release? Before we start to focus on the smaller details, let’s stop to check if our lifetime mortgage is possible for you. For starters you’ll need to:
- Be aged 55 or over – and that applies to each homeowner
- Own a home in the UK, not including the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands
- Own a home worth £75,000 or more
- Borrow at least £15,000
How long does our equity release process take?
How long does our equity release process take? This can vary from one application to the next, but a straight-forward lifetime mortgage application with us is likely to take around 6 to 8 weeks. That's from when you first apply to the money landing in your bank account.
We’ve put together a step by step guide to show how this works, with details on how to apply and what you need to think about at each stage in the process.
The pros and cons of our equity release
Things to weigh up when you're considering an Aviva Lifetime Mortgage...
Pros
- You'll still own your home
With our lifetime mortgage, you're still the owner of your home - that doesn't change. - You won’t be leaving your family with the debt
Because of our no negative equity guarantee, your loved ones will never have to repay more than the money received from the sale of your property, provided that it’s sold for the best price reasonably obtainable. - You can leave a little – or not so little – something behind
With our optional inheritance guarantee you can set aside a percentage of your home’s value to leave for family – it just means you can borrow less (the minimum you can borrow is £15,000). Inheritance will still be reduced. - A fixed interest rate just for you
We tailor our interest rates to each application so it’ll be unique to your personal situation. - Option to make voluntary repayments
You can choose to make limited repayments during the term of your lifetime mortgage, subject to terms and conditions. This can be a great way to help reduce the amount owed over time. - Our lifetime mortgage can move with you
If you decide to move, you can usually take your lifetime mortgage with you – as long as your new home meets our lending criteria at the time. If it doesn't, you may be able to repay your lifetime mortgage in full without an early repayment charge. This is called downsizing protection, available after you've had your lifetime mortgage for at least three years.
Cons
- You’ll be paying back a lot in interest
Interest is charged on the total amount borrowed and the interest already added, so the amount you owe goes up quickly. - Leaving less behind
Even if you take out our inheritance guarantee to set aside a percentage of your home’s value for your loved ones, paying off the money you’ve released (plus any interest) will still mean you’re leaving them less in inheritance. - It may have a tax impact and affect certain benefits
Taking cash out of your home through our lifetime mortgage could have tax implications or affect whether you’re eligible for some welfare benefits. Your equity release adviser will go through all of this with you. - It’s a big decision, and a lifetime commitment
Our equity release is designed to last for the rest of your life – or until you need long-term care. If things change and you want to pay this off sooner, there may be a big early repayment charge. - You’ll need to get legal advice
Like other types of equity release, you'll need to get legal advice before taking out our lifetime mortgage. There'll be a cost for this, which you'll need to pay yourself. - Property upkeep is essential
We need you to agree to keep your property in good repair, insured and pay any rent, service charges, utilities, outgoings and taxes. Failure to do so could result in the risk of repossession. - Risk of no remaining property equity
If the amount you owe increases faster than the value of your property, you could end up owing more than your home is worth. Even if you make repayments, if they are less than the interest added, or if your property value falls, the amount you owe can still grow. There is a risk that you may have no equity left in your property.
Why choose us for equity release?
Our expert advisers will help you make a decision that's right for you. There's no separate fee - Aviva pays them commission on completion.
We’ve been helping people with equity release for over 25 years, supporting more than 300,000 customers to release over £11.9 billion.
Aviva is acclaimed as Best Equity Release Lender by The Personal Finance Awards and by What Mortgage Awards – who also recognised us as Best Equity Release Lender: Customer Service.
Our lifetime mortgage offers an option to make interest repayments. When you pay all or part of the interest during the current policy year, we add an uplift to your payment to help reduce the amount you owe faster. Your financial adviser will discuss the uplift with you.
Trusted and regulated
As an equity release provider, we’re regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). We’re also a member of the Equity Release Council, and follow their standards and safeguards.
If you'd like to find out more, we've provided some answers to frequently asked questions about the Equity Release Council.
Get specialist equity release advice
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Request a guide 
You can read more comprehensive information in our free guide. It will walk you through the product features and other important facts that you need to consider.
Learn about equity release
Where to find the insight, background material and resources you need to feel better informed about equity release.
Things to consider
Alternatives to equity release
Different ways to raise cash for those aged 55 or over
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Getting started
Equity release or remortgage – how do they compare?
You don’t have to move to make the most of the money tied up in your home
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Family
Using equity release to financially support family
You can help support your family and loved ones financially with equity release, whether that's helping them to get on the property ladder or making life a little more comfortable for everyone. Inheritance will be reduced.
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Things to consider
Releasing equity to buy another property
How you can use the equity in your house to buy another property
Already have equity release with us? 
Find out all you need to know about how to manage your lifetime mortgage.
Frequently asked questions
What are the different types of equity release?
There are two main ways of releasing equity from your home.
One is a lifetime mortgage. Like the one we offer, this is a long-term loan secured against your home's value, which means you're still the owner. All the details we give here, including the answers to these questions, are about our lifetime mortgage.
The other is a home reversion plan. This isn’t so common, and involves selling all or part of your home. You then stay on as a tenant, but without paying rent.
Do I still own my own home?
Yes, with our lifetime mortgage everything will be much the same as it is now. It’s up to you to insure your home, and stay on top of council tax, energy and water bills. You’ll also need to keep the property in good shape. You can continue to live in the property until you pass away or go into long term care, subject to our terms and conditions.
Are there any fees?
Your equity release adviser will give you all the details about any fees you need to pay, when they share their plan of how your lifetime mortgage will work. This will be based on your situation, and will be different for everyone. We’ve included the types of fees you might expect to pay in our summary of how much equity release costs.
What happens when it’s time to sell the house?
In most cases, the sale of the house is when the lifetime mortgage is repaid.
Should you go into long-term care, it will be you or your solicitor who manages the sale. If you live in your home until you die, it’ll be sold by an executor looking after your estate if you have a will – or by administrators if you don’t have one.
Any money that’s left afterwards belongs to you or your estate.
Can I end an Aviva Lifetime Mortgage early?
You can end our lifetime mortgage at any time, by paying off the loan and any interest that’s been added. However, our lifetime mortgages are designed to last for the rest of your life, which means it might not be the right choice for you if you’re planning to pay it off early.
Like other mortgages, there’s likely to be a substantial early repayment charge to pay it off early. As part of the process of setting up a lifetime mortgage with us, you need to choose between fixed percentage or gilt index early repayment charges. We’ve got online booklets explaining how each repayment type works.
Read about gilt index early repayment charges (PDF 590 KB)
Read about fixed early repayment charges (PDF 190 KB)
You can also request a copy on 0800 141 3493 *
What are voluntary partial repayments?
Voluntary partial repayments (VPRs) let you pay back part of your lifetime mortgage early without paying an early repayment charge. This can help reduce the amount you owe over time.
With our lifetime mortgage you can repay up to 10% of your total borrowing across all loans each policy year. This allowance is based on the sum of all loans you've taken and doesn’t include any interest that’s built up.
The minimum you can repay each time is £50.
Some lifetime mortgages include an interest-servicing feature. If yours does, we’ll apply an uplift (a percentage boost) to any repayment that fully or partly covers the interest for the current policy year. This means your repayment will go further in reducing your balance.
The exact uplift percentage is shown in your Key Facts Illustration (KFI) and Offer documents.
We have two guides to help you:
VPRs with no uplift: A Guide to Voluntary Partial Repayments - explains how VPRs work and how to make them.
VPRs with uplift: A Guide to Voluntary Partial Repayments with an Interest-servicing uplift - explains how VPRs work when your lifetime mortgage includes the interest-servicing uplift feature and how to make them.