Equity Release Calculator
How Much, and What You'd Owe
Estimate how much a lifetime mortgage could release at your age, what the debt grows to, and what it leaves for you and your family.
Read the full answer — method, rates and figures
Quick answer: As an illustration, one major lender's published maximum at 65 is 30% of your home's value for a single borrower, so £90,000 on a £300,000 home. With no repayments the debt compounds: at an assumed 7% it reaches £177,044 after 10 years and £348,272 after 20.
The amount you are offered depends on the lender, your age, health and property, and you must take regulated advice before taking out a lifetime mortgage.
How much equity can I release?
Usually a fifth to a half of your home's value, rising with age. One lender's published maximum is 21% at 55, 30% at 65 and 50% at 80 for a single borrower. Enter your details to see the amount and what it grows to.
Lifetime mortgages generally start at 55.
Illustrative maximum at your age: £90,000.
Our assumption. Use the rate on your quote if you have one.
Illustrative maximum
£90,000
Owed after 10 years
£98,358
Owed after 20 years
£193,484
Equity left after 20 years
£252,300
Track your home and net worth
Richify keeps your home, pensions, savings and debts in one view, so you can see where you stand as you approach retirement.
Illustrative maximum
£90,000
Owed after 10 years
£98,358
Owed after 20 years
£193,484
Equity left after 20 years
£252,300
What £50,000 does over time
| Years | Owed | Left, no release | Left, with release |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | £70,128 | £431,224 | £361,097 |
| 10 | £98,358 | £465,698 | £367,341 |
| 15 | £137,952 | £502,256 | £365,809 |
| 20 | £193,484 | £527,471 | £352,300 |
"Left" is what your family receives from your home and other estate, after Inheritance Tax of £18,314 without release and £0 with it at 20 years. Assumes the released money is spent.
Equity release by age: illustrative maximums
Maximum loan to value on one lender's roll-up lifetime mortgage, issued 26 August 2026, with the amount on a £300,000 home. Joint figures use the youngest borrower's age. Other lenders differ, and your health and property can change the figure.
| Age | Single | Amount | Joint | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 21% | £63,000 | 18% | £54,000 |
| 60 | 26% | £78,000 | 20% | £60,000 |
| 65 | 30% | £90,000 | 25% | £75,000 |
| 70 | 37% | £111,000 | 30% | £90,000 |
| 75 | 42% | £126,000 | 37% | £111,000 |
| 80 | 50% | £150,000 | 45% | £135,000 |
| 85 | 53% | £159,000 | 52% | £156,000 |
For scale, the Equity Release Council reports £591,000,000 of lending to 13,611 customers in Q3 2026, with an average new lump sum of £112,822 and an average first drawdown of £58,473.
How equity release interest rolls up
What £100,000 grows to with no repayments. At 7% the debt doubles about every 10.2 years. These rates are examples, not quotes.
| After | At 6% | At 7% | At 8% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | £133,823 | £140,255 | £146,933 |
| 10 years | £179,085 | £196,715 | £215,892 |
| 15 years | £239,656 | £275,903 | £317,217 |
| 20 years | £320,714 | £386,968 | £466,096 |
Equity release vs downsizing
Raising the same £90,000 from a £300,000 home, at 7% interest and 2% house price growth. Downsizing figures are before Stamp Duty and moving costs.
| Equity after | Release | Downsize |
|---|---|---|
| 10 years | £188,655 | £255,989 |
| 20 years | £97,513 | £312,049 |
Check the moving cost with the Stamp Duty calculator, and test your growth assumption with the house price growth calculator.
What to check before you decide
Plans that meet Equity Release Council standards include six safeguards: a no negative equity guarantee, a fixed or capped rate for life, secure tenure for life, the right to move the plan to another home, the right to make overpayments, and no early repayment charge if you move into care with a medical certificate.
Compare it with your other income first. The pension drawdown calculator shows how long your pot lasts, and the Pension Credit calculator shows whether you can claim, which released money could reduce.
To see the wider estate, use the Inheritance Tax calculator and the pension Inheritance Tax calculator, then see where you stand overall with the UK net worth calculator.
Last reviewed 2 November 2026 by the Richify AI agent team.
Reviewed by Felix, Richify's AI CFO — an AI author, presented as one.
This is the textbook answer. Want to see this calculated against your actual accounts?
Connect them to Richify →See What Your Home Means for Your Retirement
Richify tracks your home, pensions, savings and debts in one net worth view, so you can see what borrowing against your home does over time. Free to download with limited use; a 7-day free trial unlocks the full app.
Get Richify — 7-day free trialHow it works
A lifetime mortgage is a loan secured on your home, usually repaid from its sale when you die or move into long-term care. You keep ownership and need make no monthly payments. Unpaid interest is added to the balance, so the debt grows faster each year. This calculator compounds interest yearly at your chosen rate and grows the home at your chosen rate, then caps the debt at the home's value, as a no negative equity guarantee does.
The maximum release uses one lender's published table as an illustration, and it is not an offer. The 7% default rate is our assumption, because we could not read a current market average. The last average we could read from the Equity Release Council was 7.24% APR for Q2 2025. Use the rate on your own quote where you have one.
The Inheritance Tax estimate applies 40% above today's £325,000 nil-rate band and up to £175,000 residence band, doubled on the joint setting to assume both sets of bands pass to the survivor. The residence band shrinks by £1 for every £2 of estate above £2 million. It assumes the money you released has been spent, ignores gifts and pensions, and holds your other estate flat.
Sources: Legal & General Interest Roll Up Lifetime Mortgage product summary (26 August 2026); Equity Release Council Q3 2026 figures; FCA MCOB 8.5A; GOV.UK Inheritance Tax; Age UK Factsheet 65. Naming a lender is not a recommendation.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your home's current value and the age of the youngest borrower.
- Choose single or joint. Joint plans usually allow a lower share because the loan is expected to run for longer.
- Enter the amount you would like to release. The calculator limits it to the illustrative maximum for your age.
- Change the interest rate and house price growth to test your own assumptions, using the rate on any quote you have.
- Add your other estate to see the equity left, what your family would receive and the Inheritance Tax effect after 5 to 20 years.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How much equity can I release?
It depends mainly on the youngest borrower's age. One lender's published maximums for a roll-up lifetime mortgage run from 21% of the home's value at 55 to 37% at 70 and 53% at 85 for a single borrower, and 18%, 30% and 52% for a couple.
These are upper limits at one lender on 26 August 2026. Your own offer can be lower.
How much will I owe on a lifetime mortgage?
If you make no payments, interest is added to the loan and then charged on itself. At 7% a debt doubles in about 10.2 years, so £100,000 becomes £196,715 after 10 years and £386,968 after 20.
Making voluntary payments, or drawing the money in stages, slows this down.
Can I owe more than my home is worth?
Not on a plan with a no negative equity guarantee, which every plan meeting Equity Release Council standards includes. If the home sells for less than the debt, the lender accepts the sale proceeds, provided it was sold for the best price reasonably obtainable and the loan terms were met.
The guarantee protects your estate from a shortfall. It does not protect the inheritance, which can fall to little or nothing.
Does equity release affect benefits?
It can. Money you release may reduce means-tested benefits such as Pension Credit and Council Tax Reduction.
For Pension Credit, savings above £10,000 count as generating income, so a large lump sum sitting in the bank can cut your award. Ask your adviser to check this before you proceed, and see the Pension Credit calculator for your own numbers.
Does equity release reduce inheritance tax?
It can reduce the bill, because the debt comes off your estate, but it also reduces what your family receives by more than it saves. Inheritance Tax is 40% on the part of the estate above the £325,000 nil-rate band and up to £175,000 residence band, so each £1 of debt usually saves 40p of tax (more for estates in the £2 million taper).
That only holds if the money has been spent or validly given away, and gifts have their own rules.
Is equity release or downsizing better?
Downsizing often leaves more wealth, because you pay no compound interest, but it has Stamp Duty and moving costs and means leaving your home. Raising £90,000 from a £300,000 home, with 2% house price growth and 7% interest, leaves about £312,049 of equity after 20 years by downsizing and £97,513 by releasing, before those moving costs.
Do I need financial advice for equity release?
Yes. FCA rules require advice from a qualified adviser before you take out a lifetime mortgage, and that adviser must check the plan is suitable for you.
Repaying early can also be expensive: one lender's published charge starts at 10% of the balance in years 1 to 3. This calculator is an estimate, not advice.
More Free Financial Calculators
Net Worth Calculator
Assets minus liabilities, including your home — and where that puts you in the UK.
💷Take-Home Pay Calculator
Income Tax, National Insurance and student loan on 2026-27 rates, England and Scotland.
🏡Lifetime ISA Calculator
The 25% government bonus, the £450,000 property cap, and the withdrawal charge.
🏘️Stamp Duty Calculator
SDLT on current bands, with first-time-buyer relief and the additional-property surcharge.
📊Capital Gains Tax Calculator
CGT on property and shares, with the annual exempt amount and reporting deadlines.
🔥FIRE Calculator
Find out when you could reach financial independence.
Further Reading
See What Your Home Means for Your Retirement
Richify tracks your home, pensions, savings and debts in one net worth view, so you can see what borrowing against your home does over time. Free to download with limited use; a 7-day free trial unlocks the full app.
Get Richify — 7-day free trialKeep your equity release up to dateStart tracking
Free to download · 7-day free trial
