• Skip to main navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Realty Solutions Group

Service Beyond Expectations

SearchClose

The Importance of Home Equity in Retirement Planning

The Importance of Home Equity in Retirement Planning | Simplifying The Market

We often discuss the difference in family wealth between homeowner households and renter households. Much of that difference is the result of the equity buildup that homeowners experience over the time that they own their home. In a report recently released by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), they reveal how valuable equity can be in retirement planning.

Craig Copeland, Senior Research Associate at EBRI, recently authored a report, Importance of Individual Account Retirement Plans and Home Equity in Family Total Wealth, in which he reveals:

“Individual account retirement plan assets, plus home equity, represent almost all of what families have to use for retirement expenses outside of Social Security and traditional pensions. Those families without individual account assets typically have very low overall assets, so they have almost nothing to draw from for retirement expenses.”

The report echoed the findings of a working paper, Home Equity Patterns among Older American Households, authored by Barbara Butrica and Stipica Mudrazija of Urban Institute. Fannie Mae highlighted these findings for their blog The Home Story this past winter, quoting Butrica and Mudrazija:

 “For most adults near traditional retirement age, a home is their most valuable asset — dwarfing retirement accounts, other financial assets, and other nonfinancial assets. Although relatively few retirees tap into their home equity, having it provides financial security… In fact, many retirement security experts argue that the conventional three-legged stool of retirement resources — Social Security, pensions, and savings — is incomplete because it ignores the home.”

USAToday interviewed two area experts to comment on the EBRI report. Randy Bruns, a private wealth adviser with HighPoint Planning Partners, agreed with the findings:

“Social Security and home equity are major pieces of the retirement puzzle.”

Wade Pfau, Professor of Retirement Income at The American College of Financial Services and author of “Reverse Mortgages: How to use Reverse Mortgages to Secure Your Retirement,” said having the equity without a plan to use it won’t help:

“Home equity is a very important asset for American retirees, and so it is important to think about how to make best use of home equity in retirement planning.”

Bottom Line

Whether you use the equity in your home through a reverse mortgage or by selling and downsizing to a less expensive home, it should be a crucial piece of your retirement planning.

Realty Solutions Group was built around a simple but elusive concept: provide brokers and clients with the highest level of service in the industry through cutting-edge sales, marketing programs and a culture that values innovation, relationships and a strong local focus.

In less than 5 years, Realty Solutions Group is among the top independent brokerage firms in S/E Wisconsin.

As a locally-owned, independent company, Realty Solutions Group is deeply committed to supporting the communities and clients we serve. We are constantly evolving, but remain focused on that one simple idea behind our founding.

We are a full service brokerage with discounted commissions. We offer no long term listing contracts, a Performance Guarantee, Smart Seller Program and a Communication Guarantee. Contact us today and let us provide you with the very best real estate experience.

Powered by WPeMatico

Table of Contents

  • Bottom Line

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Post navigation

« The High Impact of Low Interest Rates on Your Purchasing Power
4 Reasons to Buy This Summer! »
Search for:

Recent Posts

  • The One Thing Every Homeowner Needs To Know About a Recession May 19, 2022
  • How Homeownership Can Bring You Joy May 18, 2022
  • Why Rising Mortgage Rates Push Buyers off the Fence May 17, 2022
  • If You’re a Homeowner, You Have Incredible Leverage When You Sell Today May 16, 2022
  • Should You Update Your House Before Selling? Ask a Real Estate Professional. [INFOGRAPHIC] May 13, 2022

Recent Comments

    Archives

    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • August 2019
    • March 2019
    • February 2019
    • January 2019
    • December 2018
    • November 2018
    • October 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
    • December 2016
    • February 2016
    • 0

    Categories

    • Baby Boomers
    • Buying Myths
    • Demographics
    • Distressed Properties
    • Down Payments
    • First Time Home Buyers
    • For Buyers
    • For Sellers
    • Foreclosures
    • FSBOs
    • Gen Z
    • Generation X
    • Holidays
    • Housing Market Updates
    • Infographics
    • Interest Rates
    • Luxury Market
    • Millennials
    • Move-Up Buyers
    • New Construction
    • Pricing
    • Rent vs. Buy
    • Selling Myths
    • Senior Market
    • Short Sales
    • Time-sensitive
    • Uncategorized

    Meta

    • Log in
    • Entries feed
    • Comments feed
    • WordPress.org
    Search for:

    Meta

    • Log in
    • Entries feed
    • Comments feed
    • WordPress.org

    Go to mobile version