Homeowners release £1bn of equity in Q1: Key By Leah Milner 17 th May 2021 3:19 pm Home owners cashed in on rising house prices by releasing £1bn in equity during the first three months of this year, up by 13% from £950m in the same period of 2020, according to the latest market monitor from Key. Despite the increase in the value of equity released, the number of plans sold was down by 9.5% year on year from 11,423 to 10,341, as a smaller number of borrowers took out larger sums. There was a significant increase in the average amount released, which was up by 25% from £83,242 to £103,710.