Equity release adviser firm Bower Retirement Services has calculated that the UK needs to recruit an extra 800 qualified equity release specialists by 2020 to meet growing demand.

If the equity release market continues expanding at its current rate of growth, the number of customers per quarter will surpass 11,000 within the next five years.

Bower forecasts that there will be approximately 11,300 new equity release customers in Q4 2020 – more than double the 5,700 seen in Q4 2014.

The firm said it is estimated that there are currently around 800 active qualified equity-release advisers in the UK. Assuming that these professionals are already operating at maximum capacity, this means that the number of active qualified advisers will need to double in order to keep up with the growing demand, it said.

As a result, Bower predicts that the industry will need around 1,580 equity release specialists by 2020 – meaning the industry will need to recruit nearly 800 new advisers over the next five years or those already holding the qualification but not advising need to reconsider.

Geoff Charles, CEO of Bower Retirement Services, said: “Over the last year, equity release has moved into the limelight as a vital solution to help people fund their retirement. For many of the older generation, housing wealth is their biggest asset – even more so following the recent period of substantial house price growth. The widening array of equity release options is allowing over-55s to capitalise on this wealth and free up some of these funds – enabling them to make use of their hard-earned assets. This can substantially improve their quality of life, especially among those who are asset rich but cash poor. It’s no surprise then that the sector is expanding at a rapid rate.

“The challenge now is for the equity release sector to keep up with this expansion in demand. Following a record-breaking 2014, our advisers are already operating at maximum capacity. But providing quality, expert advice to those considering equity release is absolutely fundamental, and the sector could be constrained by a lack of active qualified professionals if growth continues at the current rate. We need to tempt people back who may have left the industry during the recession, and do all we can to promote new advisers to pick-up the necessary qualifications, to make sure we can provide as much advice as possible to those who need it – customers.

“We are currently in the middle of a recruitment campaign to service our increasing customer enquiries and we urge advisers to contact us for more information.”