MILLIONS of UK retirees are considering downsizing to release equity to fund their retirement including 668,000 in the South East, finds McCarthy & Stone in its inaugural Retirement Confidence Index.

Developed in conjunction with YouGov, the survey of over 3,000 UK adults aged 65 and over by the UK’s leading retirement housebuilder notes that this age group in the South East has approximately £289 billion of housing wealth, £275 billion – over 95 per cent of which is un-mortgaged.

These property rich pensioners have the scope and flexibility to turn their homes into cash by downsizing.

More than a third (39 per cent) of adults aged 65 and over are considering downsizing, saying that they are likely to move from their current property in the future if suitable properties become available.

If they were all to move it would release homes on the market with a combined value of £113 billion Of those aged 65 and over in the South East, 62 per cent, expect to use their housing wealth to fund at least some of their future adult social care needs.

More than a third (34 per cent) of retirees in the region feel it is likely that they would have difficulty living in their current home due to declining health or mobility, the survey found.

McCarthy & Stone says their study points to the need for national and local policy makers to use the planning system to focus more on the needs of older people.

The company is calling for a stamp duty exemption for older people looking to downsize to be included in Chancellor’s Autumn Statement and greater Government support in planning to boost the supply of retirement housebuilding.

Nigel Sibley, managing director (South East) at McCarthy & Stone, said: “We are encouraged to hear that the new Government is going to extend housing policy beyond starter homes. As important as this area is, it overlooks the chronic under-supply of suitable retirement housing essential to the needs of the UK’s rapidly ageing population.

“Those aged 85 and over are expected to more than double in the next 20 years to 3.2 million and those 65 and over are expected to increase by more than 50 per cent to 17.2 million. Unfortunately, the UK’s housing stock is woefully unprepared for this demographic shift to the ‘extended middle age’, and this has created a new ‘Generation Stuck’ dilemma.

“Across the UK, there is soaring demand for retirement housing, creating an unprecedented opportunity for new supply in this area. However, while more than four million retirees are thinking about moving from their homes in the UK, they are locked in due to the lack of suitable housing for later living.

“With greater retirement choices, we would be able to improve the lives of older people, release millions of under-occupied family-sized homes onto local markets, stimulate housing chains and help younger people move up the ladder.

“This must be the next focus for Government, and the forthcoming Autumn Statement provides an opportunity to re-align housing policy. The Government has shown, through its Help-to-Buy scheme and other initiatives aimed at first time buyers, that it can influence market supply. It’s now time to support the housing choices of those in later life.”