UK homeowners sit on £411.7bn usable housing equity

UK mortgaged homeowners are holding £411.7 billion of usable housing equity, according to Selina Finance. The company estimates the average mortgaged household has £51,019 available within an 85% loan-to-value limit.

The figures come as housing market activity slows. House prices were flat in June, according to Nationwide, mortgage approvals have fallen, and new sales agreed were down 7% year on year. Zoopla forecasts completed transactions in 2026 will end up to 8% below the previous year, while the average two-year fixed mortgage rate remains above 5.5%.

Across the UK's 8.07 million mortgaged homes, total equity stands at £791 billion, with just over half counted as usable equity under Selina Finance's methodology. It defines usable equity as the amount that could be accessed without taking borrowing above 85% loan-to-value.

The analysis points to marked regional differences. London had the highest average usable equity per mortgaged household at £96,623, followed by the South East at £66,276.

Outside southern England, the North West stood out. Homeowners there hold £34.1 billion of usable equity, close to the combined £37.2 billion recorded for Wales and Scotland.

The figures feed into a wider debate over whether homeowners are choosing to improve existing properties rather than move. Higher borrowing costs and a significant number of failed sales have made moving less attractive for many households with mortgages.

Selina Finance estimates that roughly a quarter of agreed sales fall through before completion. Against that backdrop, wealth tied up in homes remains one of the largest financial resources available to households.

Improve not move

A survey of 1,500 UK homeowners conducted for the report suggests home improvements are the main intended use for released equity. Some 38% said extensions and improvements would be their first priority, while 21% would use the money to pay off higher-interest debt and 11% would seek to buy a second property.

Selina Finance also estimates that households could save an average of £2,315 a year by using home equity instead of higher-interest forms of borrowing, putting the national total at £18.7 billion.

The company operates in home equity lending and describes itself as the UK's only provider of Home Equity Lines of Credit, a form of second-charge mortgage secured against a borrower's home. In the UK, homeowners have traditionally relied on remortgaging or property sales to access housing wealth.

The report draws a contrast with the United States, where Selina Finance says the home equity line market has grown to USD $422 billion. One new HELOC is opened there for every two new mortgages, highlighting a sharper difference in how households use property wealth.

Market backdrop

The housing market slowdown has emerged despite the large amount of value accumulated in residential property over recent years. Flat prices and weaker transaction volumes suggest that, for many owners, the economics of moving have worsened even as the paper value of their homes remains substantial.

That matters in a market where equity levels vary sharply by location but are widely spread across mortgaged households. Selina Finance based its calculations on an average UK loan-to-value ratio of 69% across 8,069,620 mortgaged properties, using data from the Office for National Statistics, the Financial Conduct Authority and Savills.

Its modelling adjusted regional house price figures upward by 7% to reflect total housing stock value. On that basis, the company concluded that a significant share of homeowners could access funds while staying within what it described as a prudent borrowing threshold.

Hubert Fenwick, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Selina Finance, said the figures reflect a housing market in which households may be less inclined to sell and more focused on reshaping their current homes.

"The housing market has stalled, but household wealth hasn't. Half of 2026 is gone, sales are falling and prices are treading water, yet the average mortgaged homeowner is sitting on more than £51,000 of equity they could safely put to work. When moving is off the table, the question becomes how to make the home you already own work harder by considering the renovations or improvements which make moving unnecessary," Fenwick said.