Tue, 11 Sep 07

Retired homeowners have seen the value of their properties rise by the dramatic sum of £151m a day over the past year, reports Ananova...

Rising house prices meant homeowners aged over 65 in England and Wales saw their equity increase by £64.4bn between May 2006 and June this year, to stand at £713.7bn, according to Prudential.

Retired people in London who own their home outright saw the biggest gains, with the equity in their properties soaring by £22bn during the period, accounting for a third of the total.

Strong gains

Those in the South East also saw strong gains of £11.9bn, while in the South West the value of housing equity held by pensioners jumped by just over £6bn.

Even in the North East, where gains in the value of property were lowest, pensioners saw the value of their homes rise by £1.3bn, to leave them sitting on housing equity worth £21bn.

"We were genuinely surprised by just how large the figures were for the increase in property value highlighted by our research," Prudential's Ali Crossley said.

"It's a bit of a cliche, the continuing property boom, but we believe that many retired homeowners will be astonished to learn just how much their property is accruing annually."

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