Obstacles to equity release for low income home owners equity release deals are now readily available for most older home owners on flexible terms and at prices only slightly higher than those for mainstream mortgage lending but people in some kinds of property still face difficulty in securing a deal equity release involves significant setting up costs particularly if the amount to be raised is relatively small and such deals are not generally commercially viable for people below . Obstacles to equity release rachel terry and richard gibson this report examines the obstacles faced by low income asset rich home owners in drawing on the value in their homes and proposes ways in which they could be helped to do so to pay for home improvements and care at home the study describes what equity release is and how it can provide financial help to older home owners this . The main obstacle to accessing such financial products is the widespread reluctance among older people to use equity release schemes terry and gibson 2006 hill et al 2007 in addition to a . Obstacles to equity release overcoming obstacles to equity release rachel terry richard gibson 2007 08 01 000000 more than two million older home owners have housing assets worth over gbp50000 but incomes so low that they qualify for means tested benefits drawing on housing equity could improve their quality of life significantly helping them to live more comfortably in their new releases . This could help obstacles to equity release for responsible for keeping the people needing modest repairs low income older home owners property adequately maintained or improvements to their home that inhibit them from improving deals normally enable the home equity release deals smaller their quality of life in this way owner to move home taking than this are not cost effective we then suggested what the their deal with them to the borrower as the public sector could do to make