Retired men are more likely to buy gifts for their families than women when it comes to turning property wealth into cash, new research shows.
According to over-55s retirement specialist Key Retirement, men spend nearly 50% more on gifts for families from their property wealth.
Its research among more than 8,000 customers shows families banking on financial help will receive on average nearly £48,000 if the customer is male compared with £32,400 if the customer is female.
Men on average spend £13,350 on cars with property wealth compared with nearly £11,000 for women and splash out £7,500 on holidays compared with women’s £6,350. Even when it comes to home improvements men are the big spenders, forking out £11,100 compared with £9,300 for women.
Women only outspend men when it comes to using equity release cash towards buying a new property – female customers on average raise £79,200 compared with £72,500 that men will raise towards a new home.
Equity release gives you access to the wealth tied up in your property without having to sell or move home. It is designed for older homeowners who own their property outright or have relatively small mortgages to pay.
You can borrow against the value of your home, sell it or part-exchange it for a lump sum or a regular monthly income.
A lifetime mortgage is a long-term loan which you can use to extract your funds in a single lump sum or in smaller amounts over time through what is known as drawdown. Home reversion plans allow you to access all or part of the value of your property while retaining the right to remain in it rent free.
The data underlines the growing range of ways retired homeowners are using property wealth to enhance retirement living with customers spending on everything from clearing debts and mortgages to funding treatment for pets and launching new businesses.
Figures highlight the growth of the equity release market which is on course to exceed £2 billion this year, a new record – in the nine months to October around £1.58 billion has been released with pensioners withdrawing £6.8 million a day.
Dean Mirfin, technical director at Key Retirement, said: “Grandad seems to be more generous than gran when it comes to gifts for families and more extravagant when it comes to spending on himself.
“The data shows some interesting differences between men and women with women arguably more careful and cautious while men are more likely to spend more.
“Whilst purchasing and spending habits vary the bigger picture is clear – equity release makes a major difference to life in retirement and provides a significant amount of financial freedom to allow people to prioritise their spending in a way that suits them and their lifestyle.”
