How can you afford to spend your retirement doing DIY and gardening?
An advertising partnership brought to you by Age Partnership
IT is hard to find the time and energy for jobs around the house when you are working full time, but retirement offers the chance to finally get around to many of those long-overdue projects.
Whether it is redecorating the spare room or sprucing up the garden, many people see home improvement as a hobby rather than a chore and will gladly spend hours seeking inspiration from glossy interiors and garden magazines.
In fact 45 per cent of over-50s surveyed by Age Partnership said they enjoy gardening, while an impressive 86 per cent said they still carry out DIY at home.
Yet just as you have more time on your hands to pursue these interests you probably have less money coming in each month to spend on them.
If you wondering how to pay for your home improvement plans there are plenty of options to consider.
Why not let your garden finance itself by propagating seedlings and hosting a plant sale for friends and neighbours? If you grow vegetables you could sell these too.
Alternatively you could swap cuttings from your established plants with other gardeners to bring new colour and variety into your outdoor space without spending a fortune at the garden centre.
Beekeeping is another popular outdoor pastime that you can turn into an income stream by selling honey at your local farmers' market.
Save money on garden equipment and DIY tools by sharing what you can with neighbours.
Refurbishing or upcycling old furniture to sell online is another way to make some spare money from your skills while having fun in the process.
For those looking to finance larger projects at home such as putting in a new bathroom or building a conservatory, equity release is one way of covering the cost.
Many older home owners have seen their properties soar in value over the decades and unlocking some of this cash can pay for a better lifestyle in retirement.
If you are over-55 you could use some of the value tied up in your home to provide a tax-free sum.
With a lifetime mortgage you remain in your home for as long as you live or until you need to go into care when the property will be sold to pay back the loan.
There are different options depending on whether you want to draw down money gradually over time or take a one-off lump sum.
You can choose whether to pay back interest over the course of the loan or leave it to roll up until the end and it is even possible to safeguard money for your children's inheritance.
Another alternative is a home reversion plan, where you exchange the ownership of some or all of your property for a lump sum of cash.
You will still have the right to stay in your property, rent-free, for as long as you live through what is known as a 'lifetime lease', but this is only available to those aged 65 or over.
When considering equity release it is vital to look at other options, such as downsizing and seek impartial advice to make sure that you get the best deal and that you understand the impact on your right to any means-tested benefits.