Age 60 want money for a holiday and to do some renovations

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BrenWW

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So where are we at re the LifeLoan / Fair deal ? In simple terms a couple (60) with no family who want to preferably stay in their house, do renovations ,and have some spare cash to travel when Covid has been handled. What are the options?
 
BrenWW said:
So where are we at re the LifeLoan / Fair deal ? In simple terms a couple (60) with no family who want to preferably stay in their house, do renovations ,and have some spare cash to travel when Covid has been handled. What are the options?
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Seriously. Can you give us details, full details. It's impossible to advice without them. Have a look at the money makeover thread to get the gist on what info you need to give us.
 
Bronte said:
Seriously. Can you give us details, full details. It's impossible to advice without them. Have a look at the money makeover thread to get the gist on what info you need to give us.
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I had tried to make my request simple. Don't know if this is what you're talking about, but here goes.. 60, on pup at the moment,zero savings left due to covid, don't know if business will return after covid so saw the Seniors money ad and thought about it but decided to research and someone else mentioned the Fair Deal but that just seems to pay out monthly rather than a lump sum.Asked solicitor and money advisor and both had no great knowledge/experience of Equity Release products. Want to renovate and have some holiday money as well.Don't really want to go to the hassle of moving/downsizing as local prices don't seem to be that great and renovations would give the place a new lease of life. Banks don't let you remortgage over 55, so are there any other choices left except a 'Deal with the devil' ?? (http and www before this) kisbridgingloans.co.uk/equity-release-lifetime-mortgages/equity-release-companies-to-avoid/
 
Brendan has an excellent post here that you should read

My complaint to RTE about the programme on Life Loans

Note: The first two posts are very long. But it's necessary. I have today sent this email to RTE. To: Lisa Marie-Berry , Producer LiveLine by email to: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] From: Brendan Burgess 2nd February 2021 Hi Lisa-Marie I...
www.askaboutmoney.com

In particular, this section regarding the reasons for taking out a life loan
Brendan Burgess said:
9. The final question you might be facing now is whether you should take out a Lifetime Loan today from the new company Spry Finance which is also known as Seniors Money?

There is nothing at all wrong with Lifetime mortgages. As I said earlier, in the UK there are at least 13 lenders providing them and 40,000 older people took out lifetime mortgages last year alone.

These loans are worth considering for the following reasons:

  • Fixing up your home to make it warmer or more comfortable or to put in a toilet downstairs
  • Helping your child get on the housing ladder
  • Paying for health expenses not covered by insurance
You should not take out one of these loans or any loan for the following reasons:

  • To buy a new car
  • To go on holiday
  • To pay for a child’s wedding
  • To redesign your patio and garden
  • To lend to your child to clear their business debts
  • To lend to your child to invest in their business
  • To make an investment – it’s unlikely that the returns on the investment will cover the interest rate
If you are not paying for these with cash, then say “I can’t afford it.”

But if you do need to fix up your home, see if there is any other way to do it
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If you really need the renovations, then consider the product but you should not be using it to go on holidays if you don't have any other means to pay for it.

BrenWW said:
someone else mentioned the Fair Deal but that just seems to pay out monthly rather than a lump sum.
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I don't think you understand what the Fair Deal Scheme is. It is for nursing home care only. It is not going to pay out anything to you. It covers the costs of nursing home care if you cannot afford it
 
BrenWW said:
I had tried to make my request simple. Don't know if this is what you're talking about, but here goes.. 60, on pup at the moment,zero savings left due to covid, don't know if business will return after covid so saw the Seniors money ad and thought about it but decided to research and someone else mentioned the Fair Deal but that just seems to pay out monthly rather than a lump sum.Asked solicitor and money advisor and both had no great knowledge/experience of Equity Release products. Want to renovate and have some holiday money as well.Don't really want to go to the hassle of moving/downsizing as local prices don't seem to be that great and renovations would give the place a new lease of life. Banks don't let you remortgage over 55, so are there any other choices left except a 'Deal with the devil' ?? (http and www before this) kisbridgingloans.co.uk/equity-release-lifetime-mortgages/equity-release-companies-to-avoid/
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What is your income. What are your savings. How much is your house worth. How big is it. Does it require a lot of maintanance, will it require a lot of maintanance going forward. What renovations are you planning and at what cost. How much would a suitable house in your area cost. Do you have any borrowings/loans. Have you any money out of your income that could be used to pay down a loan.

Others are more expert on Fair Deal but I don't think from the above you understand what the FD is about. But it seems if you do necessary repairs on your house than you should keep the receipts and then FD will ignore you getting a life loan.

Did you visit both a solicitor and a Finance advisor already. Did you have to pay them fo their 'non' advice.

Could you tell us what you think a Life Loan is, have you read the brochure.

Try and answer all the above. It's not about keeping it simple. The details are important.
 
Bronte ..Your Q's
1) Income - Pup
2) Savings - None, paying bills off Pup
3) House - E400-600k on similar local properties
4) 220m2 split level
5) Built '80,requires major upgrade, d/glazing, BER work,plumbing,rewiring..then it's good for ** years.....or it could be sold. I wouldn't be giving carte blanche to a builder either, can do a lot myself and I'd be aiming for the minimum to make it look good
6) Similar properties E400-800k in the area
7) Work vehicle on finance, suspended for 6 mths (+?)
8) No excess from Pup or anything to pay back a loan
I had the idea that Fair Deal was connected to needing old age care so I wasn't far out
My Solicitor/FA - just phoned them, no charge
As BB said 400k in the UK availed of Life loans last year ,thats .06% of UK population so that percentage would give you c.3k Irish based on .06% the Irish population, and the UK has more 'reputable/known' companies in their market
w.aviva.co.uk/retirement/equity-release/
w.standardlife.co.uk/equity-release/what-is-equity-release
Seniors money site w.seniorsmoney.ie/
Irish Times w.irishtimes.com/business/personal-finance/seniors-money-reopens-reverse-mortgage-loans-for-over-60s-1.4449683
 
BrenWW said:
don't know if business will return after covid
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"After Covid" will be within the next 6-9 months. Why not wait until then to see if you need to do this? You won't be going on any holidays until then anyway.
It seems rather rash to go down this path unless there's something I'm missing.
At 60 with no savings or income affording a holiday is the least of your worries.
 
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BrenWW said:
2) Savings - None, paying bills off Pup
3) House - E400-600k on similar local properties
4) 220m2 split level
5) Built '80,requires major upgrade, d/glazing, BER work,plumbing,rewiring..then it's good for ** years.....or it could be sold. I wouldn't be giving carte blanche to a builder either, can do a lot myself and I'd be aiming for the minimum to make it look good
6) Similar properties E400-800k in the area
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2. What bills are you paying off.
3. that's a very wide margin there between €400K and €600K. How much would the renovation cost? Sounds like a very expensive job to me. What work are you able to do. Do you have a garage, a part of your house suitable to change into a self contained unit.

Can you tell us the actual income coming into the house and for how many people.

If your house is worth 600K, you would be better off downsizing to a 300K house and supplementing you income with the remaining 300K. If you live to 80 it would give you 15K per annum.

You can get a very decent house in Cork, Limerick, Galway or Waterford for 300K. Less if you're smart. If you're really smart you can buy one with a self contained, attached unit, where you can earn good rental with zero tax.

Make sure you are going to be entitled to a full Irish pension. Which I think is age 66 fo you. Have you looked into your PRSI records for pension.
 
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Bills are electric /groceries and fuel, the 200k is the variation in prices around here depending on the location and condition... I'm pricing stuff I'd need, to see if putting say 50k in renovations would yield an extra 200k in the sale?? And now that we're locked down is a good time to tackle renovations before 'work' interrupts things. Why pay a tradesman 100/hr when you can do it yourself.... ?
I have pared things to the bone, and looked at all the other options but this equity release would mean that at least I'd have a house worth selling for a good price rather than a 'fire sale/fixer upper' that would benefit someone else and leave me with very little....
 
youve said 400- 600 k then 400-800k for value on the house. Why not go with facts. get an estate agent out to value your home and then you know where you stand. Have you a partner or are you solo. Is the mortgage paid off?
 
BrenWW said:
Bills are electric /groceries and fuel, the 200k is the variation in prices around here depending on the location and condition... I'm pricing stuff I'd need, to see if putting say 50k in renovations would yield an extra 200k in the sale?? And now that we're locked down is a good time to tackle renovations before 'work' interrupts things. Why pay a tradesman 100/hr when you can do it yourself.... ?
I have pared things to the bone, and looked at all the other options but this equity release would mean that at least I'd have a house worth selling for a good price rather than a 'fire sale/fixer upper' that would benefit someone else and leave me with very little....
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You've very vague with figures and I've tried many times.

As for why pay a tradesman, I say why bother to do anything at all when you can move now. You're all over the place on this. Breakdown the 50K. Breakdown your outgoings, income.

Are you seriously going to borrow money, renovate, sell. With a Life Loan. While worring about the next person, whom you don't know, benefiting from a fixer upper.

How is it a fire sale?

And if you think 400K isn't a good price what is a good price.
 
niceoneted said:
youve said 400- 600 k then 400-800k for value on the house. Why not go with facts. get an estate agent out to value your home and then you know where you stand. Have you a partner or are you solo. Is the mortgage paid off?
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Facts would be nice.
 
Bronte said:
You've very vague with figures and I've tried many times.
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I have to agree with Bronte on this. Your thought process is all over the place. You are not clear on what you actually want to do with the property or what the local area prices are. Similar properties would have plus or minus 10-20k. They would not have a range of 400-800k. Properties may have sold within that range but they are not similar to your property, they are just nearby.
  • If your plan is to renovate and live there as in your initial post, then the life loan is a suitable option for you.
  • If you plan to do a deep DIY upgrade to increase the sale value, I think it is a bad idea. You are not going to add 200k value for 50k cost and some DIY. Any potential buyers would want to see certification to ensure standards are met. You will need a lot of professional work anyway in terms of electrics and plumbing, insulation. And it is a huge house at 220sqm so €50k is unlikely to put a dent in anything other than cosmetic changes
  • If your plan is to sell and downsize, do some cosmetic work (cleaning/painting etc) and get it valued. Don't take out a life loan to do this
 
'If your plan is to renovate and live there as in your initial post, then the life loan is a suitable option for you.' ..Thanks _OkGo_ , that's the best solution I can see myself. Bigger house behind me €1.3mil / refurb cottage beside me €400k so ....how is anybody to really value the house/view? I wouldn't pay €1.3mil because I don't like the design/layout but his view is better than mine,the cottage was a bit of a money pit I think and I would have done it differently but the view was why he bought it.
I'll get estimates anyway to get an idea of costs before I proceed. It'd be better if there were a number of equity providers in the market though, just for competition....
Seniors website spryfinance.ie/the-process/?gclid=CjwKCAiAsOmABhAwEiwAEBR0Zsr-FaGCIb9X0RRtfaLjRGszMafIyHyHhIYR_xQC9vhAPrlx1XZywxoCZLQQAvD_BwE
 
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Purple said:
Ask 2 or 3 Estate Agents.
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It has to be valued for the Life Loan that way too. Anyway it's clear Bren didn't come on here for financial advice as he's already decided what he's doing. Which sounds like a complete and utter disaster based on the bits of information not forthcoming.
 
The title wasn't mine, it was moved from the Life loan thread to a separate thread. My original request was 'In simple terms a couple (60) with no family who want to preferably stay in their house, do renovations ,and have some spare cash to travel when Covid has been handled. What are the options?' meaning was there any other alternatives to the Spry/Seniors Equity release company in Ireland for getting funds to repair the house and some spare cash to do other 'normal' things. Then when the house is in a saleable state decide what to do next, 1) Sell it, payback the loan and downsize? 2)Pay back the interest annually ( would that be higher than other personal/mortgage loans interest? )....That was all I wanted to know
 
BrenWW said:
What are the options?
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You haven't provided any information that might help point out what other options might be available.

If you have an income, get a conventional loan.
If you have a pension, look at accessing the lump sum early, or borrowing now with the aim of repaying from the pension lump sum.

At 60 years of age, these products will only allow you to access a very small percentage of the equity in your home, and will limit your options in future. 60 is far too young in my view to be looking at them, except in very extreme circumstances.
 
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