Get Professional Equity Release Advice Before Committing Your Home
Equity release is a lifetime commitment that can bring with it benefits with good advice. However, with poor or no advice at all one can make grave, expensive mistakes which has been a common practice in the past. However, the industry today is streamlined and has professional brokers and financial advisors who offer credible equity release advice thus ensuring that you make the right equity release decision each time. Ideally equity release brokers and advisors in the market today will offer you advice to benefit you and not for their short-term business satisfaction.
This is the reason it is critical that prior to choosing an equity release plan, you must seek the counsel of a professional and qualified equity release adviser. Ideally, they should be a licensed and qualified financial advisor with the correct lifetime mortgage permissions. Your adviser will analyse your present situation and based upon this determine the best solution with regards to equity release schemes from the whole of the market. If they are an independent mortgage adviser it means that they will not be limited to selling schemes from particular companies, and you will have a wider choice of plans from the whole of the equity release market. If you work with an advisor who works for one particular equity release company, they might be obliged to offer you advice on the company’s products only, rather than offering a range for you to choose. This may mean that there could be better products out there you may not be aware of. Therefore, always seek advice from someone who is independent and experienced in such matters.
One can use the following checklist to determine if they want to work with a particular advisor. The first thing is to ensure that they are authorised by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and if they work independently or with a particular provider. You also need to confirm that they have passed the specialist equity release examinations and have the certification, since you want to deal with a knowledgeable adviser.
You can also go ahead and ask more about their experience in dealing with clients, and if possible, get referral contacts and testimonials to ascertain this. Ask about their expertise in the field generally, since they more knowledgeable they are, the higher the chances that they will offer sound advice. When you are in a meeting with an adviser, do not shy away from asking questions on things that you do not understand. Your adviser should be forthcoming & courteous.
Moreover, even as you ask your own questions, ensure that the adviser is also asking you relevant and useful questions while painting a realistic image of your financial situation. Lastly check all the documents carefully before you sign, and if there is need seek legal help on areas that you do not understand.
Equity release is a big decision so take your time before taking one of the biggest financial decisions of your life. To find your local independent equity release call 0800 678 5159 where expert impartial advice can be found.