Two recent reports have illustrated the dependence of many current and future pensioners on their home as the key asset to fund their future… but with the prospect of many of them going into retirement still burdened by mortgage debt.

Bower Private Clients have estimated that, for nearly six out of 10 over-55s, their property wealth tops their total pension savings. This opens up the prospect of many people seeking to downsize during retirement in order to release funds.

New analysis, meanwhile, from ILC-UK and the Building Societies Association reveals that UK pensioners will see their mortgage debt soar to £39.9bn by 2030 – a rise of over £19bn. This again may require them to make major adjustments in order to live within their means.

Around 11% of those questioned by Bower say they plan to use the capital tied up in their home to help fund their retirement – and that 25% would welcome the opportunity to be able to borrow against the value of their property.

Andrea Rozario, Chief Corporate Officer at Bower Private Clients, said: “Stock market volatility and historically low interest rates have had a major impact on pension and investment income since the financial crash while those who are lucky enough to have got on the property ladder have benefited.

“That means over-55s may find themselves in a position where they have the home which they love but not the income or liquid assets they need to fund their own retirement while being able to help family.

“Lifetime mortgages are among the solutions they should be looking at.”

By 2030, the ILC-UK projects that £3.3 trillion or 58% of all housing wealth in the UK will be owned by the over 65s. However, economic trends – including house price inflation, tighter credit conditions and low real wage growth – will lead to as many as 1.42 million people reaching State Retirement Age without having paid off their mortgage. Ben Franklin from the International Longevity Centre-UK, said: “The housing market must better adapt to our ageing society, building more homes for all ages across a range of tenures.

“Over the course of a lifetime, including in retirement, consumers will need to have access to the right mortgage products and advice in order to maximise their long run financial wellbeing.

“Building societies have made a good start in this regard, but this is a whole of market challenge that will ultimately need whole of market solutions.”

You can find out what impact taking out a Lifetime Mortgage or downsizing in the future would have on your retirement finances using the Premium version of RetireEasy LifePlan