Eighty-seven per cent of financial advisers would say they need to “re-engage” and become more involved in the later life lending market over the next two to three years, research from Air Mortgage Club has found.

This figure increased to 92% among mortgage advisers only, while 80% of financial advisers felt the same way.

Nine in 10 (90%) advisers believe there is a growing need for later life lending, while 85% are also expecting established demographic drivers to keep the market buoyant over the next two to three years.

The research, based on a study of over 400 advisers, also highlighted a number of further key drivers around why they anticipate clients will choose later life lending options in the future, including paying off an existing mortgage (85%), helping family with financial needs (65%), and funding essential spending (64%).

Air Mortgage Club found that advisers suggested this greater involvement would come via three potential approaches – referring clients to specialists, retraining themselves to provide later life lending services or refocusing efforts to speak to existing clients about these products.

When asked what support was required by advisers to help them engage with this market, 52% said a marketing campaign to support more customer awareness, 47% said innovation in product design, 43% said a wider range of providers offering later life lending products, 29% said focused webinars/seminars to improve knowledge, and 28% said better digital tools.

Air Group CEO, Stuart Wilson, said that the research shows that advisers believe the later life lending market is “ripe for growth”.

“With the underlying fundamentals, including demographics and a growing need to access housing equity, likely to fuel the need for lending up to, and into, retirement,” Wilson commented.

“The big question is not only how do they either engage, or re-engage, with a customer base which fits this bill but how we as an industry can support them. There are, of course, a number of options and we are clearly a sector which needs both a greater number of active later life lending advisers and an increase in the number who are willing to refer onto specialists.”

Wilson added: “Advisers want the industry as whole to continue educating and informing consumers about the later life lending options available to them, but also the importance of securing advice, where to find that advice, and what range of solutions they should be able to access.

“We must, as an industry, now put ourselves in the best possible position to help these customers, and the advisers who deal with them.”

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