Tag Archives: Aviva Equity Release Calculator

How Does the Aviva Equity Release Calculator Compare to Independent Equity Release Calculations?

How Does the Aviva Equity Release Calculator Compare to Independent Equity Release Calculations?

An equity release calculator is meant to calculate the maximum release equity that you could potentially release from your property. While only a few companies offered an equity release calculator until a few years ago, today, most independent advice companies, as well as providers, have followed suit and offer equity release calculators on their respective websites. So when using an equity release calculator, is it better to go directly to a provider, or use an independent calculator from the whole of the equity release market?

The best way to get the most out of an application such as an equity release calculator is to have a calculator that provides a free and simple way to calculate maximum potential release, and gives up-to-date and impartial results. However, specific equity release providers such as Aviva are bound to have only their own products on the database of their calculator, and can therefore show a very limited picture of what could be available to you.

The point of an equity release calculator is to get a fair idea of the most you could get and this is in essence a way to shop around and find the highest possibility in terms of equity release. Therefore going to only one single provider for this seems to beat the entire purpose of the exercise! It is important to use an independent equity release calculator that can sift through its database and give you up-to-date and impartial results.

The cons of using Aviva’s equity release calculator

As an example, consider that you live in a flat and use the Aviva equity release calculator. Simply on knowing that you live in a flat, the Aviva will immediately make a deduction of 15% in the valuation before making a calculation, and use only 85% of the entire valuation. An independent equity release calculator will never make such a deduction at the start of the calculation. It will address this issue by using the maximum loan to value figure from the entire equity release market. Not all lenders use this ruling and therefore the importance of independence shines through.

Another example of the negative aspect of using the Aviva equity release calculator would be the locality of the property. Using modern sourcing systems including Environment Agency data flood check risks, Aviva will accept or decline a property on this basis. Only a couple of other equity release providers will use this data in accepting or declining equity release applications. Therefore, the majority of lenders that do not use these criteria maybe could be the best route for an equity release calculation. Again, evidently independence wins the day over tied equity release providers.

An independent equity release calculator has the advantage of having access to all the information that is available, as opposed to concentrating only on one single provider. By using an independent equity release calculator, you could also potentially get a much better deal. For instance an independent equity release adviser will have Aviva rates starting from 5.62%, while Aviva’s direct rate is nearer 6%!

Aviva direct closed its salesforce

In fact Aviva has price differentials for those people who contact them directly. Should you contact Aviva regarding making an equity release enquiry, you cannot get assistance from any of their direct sales force – it has been closed down on 1st July 2013. Aviva now will farm you out to three separate equity release brokers, but not with the benefit of the independents interest rate, but a higher rate than other specialist equity release brokerages such as Equity Release Supermarket get. This effectively means that the long-term cost of seeking advice from Aviva Direct now is higher than going to one of the independent equity release brokerages.

Another significant benefit of using an independent equity release calculator is that you could have access to attractive deals and offers, such as up to £1000 cash-back deals, as well as free valuations which Aviva directly themselves do not offer currently. So not only will there be a lower interest rate, but going to someone like Equity Release Supermarket will save on your initial set up costs.

In summary, Aviva, although are one of the better equity release companies, going directly to Aviva maybe does not offer the best terms. Going to an independent resource could provide you with exactly the same product which is the Aviva Flexi Plan, albeit on preferential terms by using an independent equity release calculator and adviser.

 

What are the Top 5 Equity Release Calculators?

Review of the Top 5 Equity Release Calculators

A good equity release calculator is one that is free, simple to use, transparent and offers impartial results. While there are numerous websites offering equity release calculators, only a good and truly objective calculator can help you get a fair idea of how much you could release. Here’s a list of the top 5 equity release calculators available today: –

1. Equity Release Supermarket – are one of the original independent equity release companies offering advice and guidance about the different equity release schemes available in the UK. In fact, this was one of the first websites to develop the basis of the equity release calculator for users to calculate the maximum release. The calculator itself is simple to use, well designed and gives quick and comprehensive results every time. Two results are published by this company, which is more than most. Equity Release Supermarket not only provides the standard maximum equity release, but also will provide the figures for an enhanced lifetime mortgage.

This means that if you have poor health you also receive a higher calculation figure which could be applicable. As always they state this is acts as a guide & should endeavour to contact their advisory service on 0800 028 3104 to obtain an accurate quotation. Equity Release Supermarket has an extensive database of providers and plans and its comparison tools let you search the entire equity release market to find the most suitable deal. Once you calculate the maximum release you are provided with the option of whether you wish to submit your details to receive further advice & ensure qualification for any of the lifetime mortgages available in the whole of the market.

Mark Gregory is their founder & can be contacted at mark@equityreleasesupermarket.co.uk


2. Compare Equity Release – CompareEquityRelease.com is one of the best comparison sites in the equity release sector, offering information and guidance about all the different equity release & home reversion products currently available in the market.

The website is easy to use, well designed, with a convenient equity release calculator app that lets you answer the most important question that anyone has while considering equity release – ‘how much can you borrow?’

Compare equity release is the only website that goes one step further than providing a standard & enhanced lifetime mortgage calculation. Not only has a free lifetime mortgage calculator, but also a free interest only lifetime mortgage calculator. It is one of the few websites that compares between all available equity release plans to come up with the maximum potential release for any given age. The style of the two calculators is modern & in keeping with today’s internet savvy silver surfers.

CompareEquityRelease.com can be contacted on Freephone 0800 028 3104 or by email at admin@compareequityrelease.com


3. Equity Release Calculator – EquityReleaseCalculator.net is an independent calculation website that provides useful information on all matters relative to an equity release calculator. Therefore, if you require further knowledge on how these calculators work, plus the pros and cons of an equity release calculator, then this site holds a mass of information on the subject.

The site also features many articles on the subject of how to release equity and what is equity release. So there is plenty of information abound on the calculating of the maximum equity release.


4. Equity Release2go – EquityRelease2go.com is a relatively new independent equity release website that offers a free equity release calculator. The website itself is simple to navigate and the calculator is easy to use if somewhat difficult to locate on the website. Additionally, EquityRelease2go.com have a separate section detailing the best equity release deals available including cashbacks, free valuations & reduced interest rates available to its customers.

Being a relatively new website, certain features are set to follow which given the message the site provides should be soon!

However, they can be contacted on 0800 028 3104 or by visiting their contact page here – http://www.equityrelease2go.com/contact


5. Aviva Equity Release – their equity release eligibility calculator performs many functions; qualifies your age, property value and property type. In addition you have the option of inputting an inheritance protection percentage which will affect the ultimate result.

This level of options can be afforded as the Aviva equity release calculator only works its calculations based on its own products which are the Lifestyle Flexible Option and the Aviva Lump Sum Max.

Therefore, the results shown are only relevant to Aviva’s own equity release plans & do not represent the whole of the market. If you are looking for the maximum equity release from the whole of the market there may be companies that offer larger releases of equity out there.

These are some of the most objective, impartial and easy to use equity release calculators. They are free and can offer an instant quote of the maximum release for your age and property valuation. The more established and reputable the company, the more reliable they are likely to be!