A fifth of those planning to withdraw pension looking to invest in property

The study, carried out by holiday letting specialist, holidaycottages.co.uk, found that of those who are planning to access their pensions, 20 per cent are looking to invest in property. 
 
Londoners form one of the largest groups keen to invest some of their pension pot in bricks and mortar. Nearly half (47 per cent) of those in the capital looking to withdraw their pension cite property investment among their plans.
 
Just under half (42 per cent) of those looking to access their pension from the age of 55 are looking to splash the cash on a holiday – potentially good news for those whose plans involve buying a holiday property to let. The holiday letting market could therefore be set for a boom with both more holiday homes and an increase in demand from the over 55s market.
 
Holidaycottages.co.uk, which manages 2,000 cottages across the UK, has seen a 32 per cent increase in bookings compared to this time last year, showing the holiday rental market is as healthy as ever and set to grow. Norfolk is one of the top performing regions, with occupancy up 17 per cent compared to this time last year. The South Coast, too, has seen a noteworthy increase in occupancy of 9 per cent. 
 
With the average price of property in holiday hotspot Cornwall at £246,657 (according to Zoopla, February 2015) and average weekly holiday rental income of £918 per week in peak summer, property-purchasing pensioners could see a good return on their investment. Similarly, Devon holiday cottages booked last summer saw an average income of £901 per week, with an average house price of £254,134 in the county, showing that the right property could be a lucrative investment.