Accessing your pension now builds up future problems

If you think the relaxation of the pension rules is an altruistic giveaway from the government you'd be wrong. Not only will it reap a huge amount in tax revenues but it may also dig older homeowners out of a huge hole.

This hole is called 'interest-only mortgages'. The idea now seems ridiculous - only pay off the interest on your mortgage and pay the capital of the loan at the end of the term – but in the boom days before the credit crunch when lending was free and easy and house prices were going to continue going up forever they seemed like a no-brainer.