Housing wealth is increasingly central to retirement planning - but most advisors still leave it off the table
The global equity release market is on course to nearly triple in size by 2035, with North America identified as the primary driver of that growth, according to the fourth annual Global Equity Release Survey published in September 2026 by the European Pensions and Property Asset Release Group (EPPARG) and Ernst & Young LLP (EY).
The report, which draws on data from market participants across 14 countries and cities including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, and Hong Kong puts current annual global equity release volume at approximately US$17.7 billion. That figure is forecast to reach $52 billion by 2035.
Canada is listed among the survey's smaller-volume markets today, with fewer than five active providers and current annual volume below $0.5 billion. But the trajectory mapped out in the EPPARG-EY report and the structural pressures behind it, is consistent with trends already visible in the domestic market although while several equity release strategies are available, including reverse mortgages, home equity lines of credit, and downsizing, the proportion of Canadians who actually use them remains small.
Why the gap persists
The EPPARG-EY survey found that respondents across all 14 jurisdictions identified limited consumer knowledge and awareness as the most significant barrier to growth, with persistent misconceptions - including the widely held but incorrect belief that the lender takes ownership of the home - continuing to suppress uptake.
Elevated interest rates compared with pre-2022 levels and, in some markets, constrained access to funding were also cited as structural obstacles.
Researchers found that consumers are generally willing to use their home equity in times of financial hardship when faced with costs such as care or nursing, but emotional obstacles along with the costs and complexity of equity release products prevent consumers from using them to fund retirement. That finding, from an FP Canada study of 1,200 Canadian consumers and 500 financial planners, points directly to the advisory opportunity.
The EPPARG-EY survey's respondents were emphatic about one change that could shift this dynamic: repositioning equity release products as a credible, mainstream retirement planning option through financial advisors, rather than a measure of last resort.
The survey notes that domestic funding is available in the Canadian market, with fewer than five providers active nationally. Financing in Canada comes primarily from banks. The survey projects that most respondents anticipate domestic funding will increase in the years ahead, which, if realised, would support expanded product availability and potentially bring new entrants into the market.
Steve Kyle, Secretary General of EPPARG, framed the opportunity in generational terms. "The challenges of ageing populations in many countries will lead to unsustainable social, economic and intergenerational costs," he said. "A safe equity release market has a vital role to play in later life lending and planning, with many elderly homeowners across the globe wishing to remain independent for longer."
