Category: Uncategorized

We’re making changes to our back-office systems to enhance our services and offer you more benefits. The central element of these changes is our new member portal called sheepCRM. Welcome to the flock!

This portal will eventually be used to manage your membership and provide various features such as submitting compliance certificates, booking events, and updating your address. While not all functions are live yet, today’s roll-out will improve password security and lay the groundwork for future improvements.

To start using the new portal, you need to create a password, using the email address we use to contact you. From then on you will use the same email address and password to access both the new portal and the existing members’ lounge.

Your old members’ lounge password no longer works because everything is now managed through the membership portal.

We have made the set-up process as easy as possible by uploading your existing details like name, address, membership, and firm. You only need to go through a two-minute registration process to create your password. Once you complete the set-up, you will be redirected to a landing dashboard page, which may have limited functionality initially. However, additional features will be added in due course.

Please note that for security reasons, we are unable to view or change your password in the system. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Technology can sometimes encounter unexpected issues, so we would appreciate your understanding in case of any challenges during the roll-out. Rest assured, we will keep you informed about the progress and do our best to ensure a smooth experience.

We know it’s quite a lot to take in so, in summary:

• We’re enhancing our back-office systems to improve services and security.
• We need you to create a new password for our new member portal using your existing username, which is your email address.
• You will then use the same username and new password for both the new portal and members’ lounge.
• You’ll not be able to access the members’ lounge without completing these steps.
• The member portal functionality is limited at the moment but when we bring new services online we will let you know by email.

To get started click here 

Once the above schedule has been completed the LIBF will then be able to offer all its qualifications, examined by multiple-choice exam, via test centres and remote invigilation; providing students with the flexibility to sit their exams when and where they wish.  This will become a core part of the LIBF’s offering and going forward all students will have the choice to sit their exams from home or via a test centre.

Written and typed exams

Alongside the qualifications that are assessed by multiple-choice exams, the following qualifications that have a written/typed assessment will be made available via remote invigilation, so students can sit their exam from home.

Exam results at Pearson test centres

The LIBF has previously provided students with their exam results at the Pearson VUE test centres, issuing a printed results sheet, as soon as they have completed their exam. However, due to enhanced safety measures at the test centres and a change in technology, results will no longer be provided at the test centres.

Instead students can access their result within three to four hours via their MyLIBF account. LIBF said it appreciated this has increased the amount of time it takes for students to receive their result but they will still get these on the same day and this is a safer and greener option compared to before.

For further information visit the LIBF website.

By: Martin Wade, director, Access Equity Release.

I was very impressed with the Equity Release Council’s reaction to the ITV documentary on equity release that aired last month. Its social media post was certainly much more measured than my initial reaction to the documentary. “#EquityRelease Has Changed” “Sub 3% interest. No negative equity guarantee. Downsizing/inheritance protection. Interest repayment options.”

Yes, yes and yes. It was a positive reaction to highlight the realities of modern-day equity release, against the backdrop of a documentary that was, in my view, somewhat sensationalist and unbalanced. Some of the case studies were particularly problematic including one from 1997 in which a couple took out a £187,000 shared appreciation mortgage.

Sub 3% interest✔️
No negative equity guarantee✔️
Downsizing/inheritance protection✔️
Interest repayment options✔️ #EquityRelease has changed.
Visit https://t.co/7HwK3YkJuA to find an adviser or https://t.co/rZJzxuN7Ag to watch the #itvtonight doc in full pic.twitter.com/fJ2knsq51d

— ER Council (@Equity_Council) November 8, 2019

The presenter did mention that this type of loan was unusual. But he failed to point out that this sort of product, in which customers agreed to share a percentage of any future increase in the value of the property, bears little resemblance whatsoever to equity release products in the regulated market in which we operate today.

The legal expert on the programme did at least point out that shared appreciation mortgages were only on the market for a short time. However, there was no clear distinction between those types of loans and modern-day products. To say that equity release has changed since 1997 really is an understatement. There was certainly no mention of the inheritance or gifting options available to equity release customers today on the advice of specialists.

It did annoy me, but I was not entirely surprised. This suspicion of equity release is not new to those of us who specialise in it. Myths and misconceptions about equity release persist and the real tragedy of this is that it can be the right choice for so many of us entering retirement asset rich and cash poor.

There could be people struggling with cash flow in retirement who have no idea what releasing equity could do for them. The options available are increasing all the time. Today there are just over 300 products, compared to around 160 just 12 months ago. Competition means that current interest rates are attractively low. Many people have no idea of the life-changing potential the equity in their homes has for them and their families including much needed home improvements, better standards of living, repaying debts, travel and helping family.

So how do we tackle the problem of mistrust and misunderstanding? Head on in my view. Like the ERC response on social media. Positive messaging about the benefits of the many products available in the equity release market. Sharing that content widely. Answering questions. Showing how it works. Yes of course our advice must be balanced. The regulator demands it and rightly so.

Every client must understand every financial and legal implication of their decision and the agreement that they sign. They must be fully advised and informed before they make the choice. And if equity release is not suitable, the adviser must not recommend it. Instead they may refer to another specialist or in our case, our advisers are able to recommend other potential routes such as a remortgage if possible.

The demand for equity release will not slow in our ageing population. However, awareness of the potential benefits will not grow unless we shout from the rooftops. Equity release has indeed changed. Property wealth should be part of our financial planning for later life. As the documentary showed right at the end, with the right expertise, clients soon see through the myths and understand the potential of equity release.

Knight Frank Finance responds to Equity Release Council’s latest figures: ‘Equity Release is still growing’ says David Forsdyke

Older homeowners withdrew £3.92 billion of housing equity during 2019, a four-fold increase on the £946 million taken out a decade earlier, according to data released by the Equity Release Council today.

Later Life Finance products, once regarded as a niche, are now clearly entering the mainstream. This is driven by a mixture factors that include our aging population, the significant amounts of housing wealth held by the over 65s and changes to pension provision.

Having said that, the £3.92 billion of Equity Release lending in 2019 is actually a small decline from the £3.94 billion in 2018, so what’s going on here? Are we seeing the first signs of a plateau?

The data would suggest not. Across the housing market, 2019 was characterised by a lack of urgency by both buyers and sellers. Property sales across the country were down approximately 5% compared to 2015 levels. In London, where the financial commitment of buying a home is that much larger, sales were down approximately 20%.

Like home buyers and sellers, many older homeowners considering Equity Release had paused amid so much political turmoil in 2019, so such a comparably small decline is actually encouraging. Thanks to the political certainty provided by December’s election, we expect a return to growth in 2020, underpinned by a pick-up in both the economy and property market that short term indicators suggest may already be taking place.

The purchasing managers index (PMI) hit a sixteen-month high in January and, during the ten days following the election, Knight Frank transacted more exchanges in central London than any equivalent period since December 2016.

As sentiment improves further, so will demand for Equity Release. We expect a notable proportion of growth in 2020 will come from the high net worth community, whether that be for the purposes of inheritance tax planning, covering the cost of care, gifting funds to children or grandchildren, or simply to top-up income.

This blog first appeared on the Knight Frank website which is available by clicking here.