A survey carried out on behalf of Legal & General Home Finance found that 22% of current workers plan to use the value of their home to pay for their retirement.

Additionally, of the 4,000 adults asked at the end of this year, the survey showed that 35% of all non-retirees own a house but have less than £10,000 in their pension fund and 22% have no pension savings whatsoever.

Legal and General calculates that the average homeowner in England and Wales, after seeing a 24% increase in median house prices since 2016, could access close to £73,000 through equity release.

According to the findings, 10% of workers expect to downsize when they retire, 9% expect to sell, while just 6% currently expect to use a lifetime mortgage when they are older.

Legal & General Home Finance chief executive Claire Singleton comments: “The significant increase in house prices in recent years has likely shifted many people’s expectations of the role property wealth will eventually play in supporting their retirement.

“We anticipate that using your home to fund your retirement will become more commonplace in the future, whether that’s by downsizing to free up funds or releasing money tied up in your home through products like lifetime mortgages.

“It’s never too early to start thinking about how you plan to fund retirement, and to seek the appropriate advice to get your affairs in order, and for many homeowners their property could be the key to getting the lifestyle they desire.

“Our findings also show there are a large number of people currently in retirement who may be on a limited income and could benefit from the likely increases in the value of their home. It’s important we challenge the discomfort some people still have with using cash from their home to help them achieve better financial outcomes in retirement.”