It said a large number of borrowers were using equity release to move a mortgage, or pay it off, where it was owned by a vulture fund.<\/p>\n
Spry Finance said its data shows that 32pc of all lending last year went to single female homeowners. This includes widowed, divorced and separated women.<\/p>\n
Half of the equity release loans went to couples and 18pc to single men.<\/p>\n
Equity release lets homeowners, who are usually over 60, borrow against their home\u2019s value as a tax-free lump sum or income, without moving, with the loan plus rolled-up interest repaid when the house is sold or the owner dies.<\/p>\n
Borrowers have the option to make repayments on the loan.<\/p>\n
If they do not make repayments the interest compounds and is added to the loan balance over time, increasing the total debt.<\/p>\n
This can mean a big chunk of the value of the home is eaten up when the equity-release loan has to be paid off.<\/p>\n
People considering equity-release loans are strongly advised by finance experts to seek financial and legal advice, and consult family members.<\/p>\n
The loans have proved controversial in the past when sons and daughters were unaware their parents had taken out an equity-release product wiping out much of their expected inheritance.<\/p>\n
Spry\u2019s fixed interest rate is 6.95pc a year, fixed for life.<\/p>\n
The figures show that around 13pc of those taking out an equity release loan used it to switch mortgage provider or refinance. Most of those refinancing debt were paying down debts to credit servicers who act on behalf of vulture funds.<\/p>\n
Refinancing emerged as a significant driver both in Dublin and nationally as homeowners used lifetime mortgages to replace traditional mortgages or pay off short-term borrowing.<\/p>\n
The average age of Spry\u2019s customers last year was 71, with borrowers ranging from 55 to 90 years of age.<\/p>\n
Customers borrowed slightly more last year, with the average loan size increasing by 14pc to \u20ac112,000 on 2024.<\/p>\n
Spry Finance director David Brady said: \u201cWhat we\u2019re seeing is a shift in how women are using the value tied up in their homes.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said issues such as the gender pay gap or career breaks mean that women are more likely than men to have insufficient pension provisions.<\/p>\n
\u201cIncreasingly, some are using equity release as a way to create financial breathing space \u2013 whether that\u2019s for repaying an existing mortgage, topping up retirement income, or upgrading their home.<\/p>\n
\u201cLifetime Mortgages mean they don\u2019t have to downsize, they can remain in the home they love while taking greater control of their later life financial needs,\u201d Mr Brady said.<\/p>\n
Dublin accounted for 58pc of total lending, with loans issued across almost every Dublin postcode, and particularly strong demand in areas where property is more expensive.<\/p>\n
Spry Finance reported total lending of \u20ac75m in 2025, a 30pc increase year-on-year.<\/p>\n
The lender said the figures reflect how equity-release loans are increasingly being used to help support retirement, refinance existing mortgages, and help support families with a living inheritance.<\/p>\n
Since re-launching on the Irish market in 2021, Spry has now lent more than \u20ac250m to people aged over 60.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It said a large number of borrowers were using equity release to move a mortgage, or pay it…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":270773,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[72,3361,61,60,3362],"class_list":["post-270772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-business","tag-charlie-weston","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-money-experts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/270772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=270772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/270772\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/270773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=270772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=270772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=270772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}