Why rightsizing your Yorkshire home could release an average £80,500

The analysis shows the huge range in the average sum that could be unlocked, from just under £60,000 in the North East to just over £239,000 in London.

Almost one-quarter of the resulting “unlockable” housing wealth sits in the South East of England, some £111bn, over 40 per cent more than across the North East, North West and Yorkshire and Humber combined.

In Yorkshire, there are 355,800 under occupied properties with an average value of £251,600 and the average unlockable value is £80,500.

The number of households over the age of 65 who own their own home has risen by 27 per cent over the past 10 years to 5.45m according to the English Housing Survey. Of these home owners 94 per cent own their homes outright and 41 per cent have lived there for 30 years.

The same data source suggests two-thirds of these are technically under-occupying their home, with Savills estimating that this number has increased by almost a million in the past decade.

“Traditionally, homeowners have understandably been reluctant to downsize given their attachment to the former family home, a lack of financial incentive to do so, and a limited supply of good quality retirement accommodation to entice them to make the move,” says Lucian Cook, head of residential research at Savills.

He adds: “However with the costs of running a home increasing so rapidly, the financial benefits of downsizing are likely to come to the fore and this will outweigh the fear of a house move.”