More than a third of accountants plan to fund some or all of their retirement using property wealth, a survey suggests.

New research from Bower Private Clients found one in eight would fund all of their retirement from selling their current home or by relying on investments in buy-to-let and rental income.

The high net worth retirement lending adviser said this underlined a shift in attitudes to saving for retirement with a fifth saying they have no pension savings.

Andrea Rozario, chief corporate officer at Bower Private Clients, said: “Accountants can earn significant incomes and can accumulate a wealth of assets like property and increasingly are looking to property as a source of retirement income.

“This reflects the changing attitudes across the rest of the population with the wealth tied up in homes seen as a potential source of retirement funding which is driving increasing demand for retirement lending solutions.

“The continuing squeeze on pension and investment income means accountants will likely look to consider how best to maximise what will easily be their biggest asset and in turn consider solutions such as lifetime mortgages.”

However, the average accountant’s retirement will be funded mainly by pension savings. Around 54% have defined contribution pensions and seven per cent have final salary schemes, the research stated. On average 48% of retirement funds will come from pensions and 42% will come from property.

More than half (53%) said they were confident with 21% saying they were very confident and 50% have reviewed their pension plans within the last 12 months.

Bower is anticipating a surge in demand for more specialist advice and bespoke solutions for retired homeowners who need to maximise their property assets.

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