You are here: Home - News -

Equity release market to hit £2.3bn by 2019 – Legal and General

by:
  • 15/03/2016
  • 0
Equity release market to hit £2.3bn by 2019 – Legal and General
As Legal and General report operating profits up 14% in results out today, the insurance giant predicts lifetime mortgage sales will hit £2.3bn by 2019.

Following L&G’s acquisition of Newlife Home Finance last year, which became L&G Home Finance the firm has reported lifetime mortgage sales of £201m, with £99m in Q4.

In its preliminary results out today, the firm said the number of people over 60-years-old is expected to grow by 6.3m in the next 20 years, coupled with an estimated £1.4tn of housing equity currently owned by the over 65s in the UK, making the long-term growth characteristics of this market very strong.

The company reported a rise in operating profit to £1.46bn, boosted by demand for products such as lifetime mortgages and a reduction in the level of capital set aside for its annuity business.

Individual annuity sales were down 45% to £327m, against £591m in 2014, with £65m of sales in Q4 2015. The insurer said it expects the market to stay ‘subdued.’

As reported in February, Legal & General Mortgage Club completions rose 15% to £46bn of mortgages in 2015 through 8,000 mortgage brokers. This is £6bn more than 2014 and means the club has a hand in one in five of all mortgages.

Legal & General Surveying Services completed around 465,000 surveys, or 96% more than 2014.

General Insurance operating profit reduced to £51m, from £59m in 2014.

The Group’s strategic switch towards long-term investments including housing; urban regeneration; alternative finance and clean energy is ‘utilising the long-term nature of the Group’s liabilities and capital requirements’ it said.
To date, the Group has invested £7bn and it intends to invest up to £15bn in the medium term.

On its retail protection plans, it said it sees the potential to grow as sales become more digital and direct and is exploring ways to offer additional protection products through its Workplace proposition.

More recently, through its Housing Partnerships division, L&G invested £600m to build 3,000 private rented homes in Bristol in collaboration with Dutch Pension fund PGGM with plans to invest a further £400m into Cardiff to help regenerate the city.

Nigel Wilson, group chief executive, said: “Our strategy is aligned to growth for our markets, meeting our customers’ needs and delivering socially useful products. We remain confident in the outlook for our business.”

There are 0 Comment(s)

You may also be interested in