UK Homeowners over-55 have more wealth than Italian GDP

Homeowners in England that are aged 55 and over have more value and wealth in their properties than the entire GDP of Italy.

That is according to a report commissioned by Age Partnership, a retirement firm.

The report found that people of that age group in England own ￡1.5trillion worth of property, which is astonishingly ￡100bn more than the entire Italian GDP.

It also beat the GDP of Spain and Brazil.

In fact, the figure - which was calculated using English Housing Survey data on the number of over 55s who own their home outright, alongside average house prices from the Land Registry - makes the age group the richest in the world.

The report also found that the already impressive figure is only set to increase as the number of over 55s living in the UK is expected to grow by a third over the next two decades.

If house prices increase by a predicted rate of 2% annually then, according to Age Partnership, the figure could reach ￡2.9tn by 2036.

Equity release expert at Age Partnership, Simon Chalk, said that a “small fortune” resides in the English homes of the older generations and that they must “benefit from it”.

"Over the next 20 years housing wealth will become increasingly important, as the baby-boomers generation reach retirement en-masse.

He continued: "Pensions will continue to cause a headache as the population ages.

He concluded that "adding property wealth to the mix could help alleviate that pressure."