The Council now has 164 member firms.
Lighthouse Group plc has joined the Equity Release Council as its first financial services network organisation member.
This comes as part of a broader retirement planning advice and the breadth of options in the mortgage market.
Donna Bathgate, chief operating officer of the Equity Release Council, said: “I am delighted to welcome Lighthouse as our first network member.
“Lighthouse’s reputation is highly respected within the advisory community and I look forward to working with them to help ensure more customers are able to access the advice they require.”
Paul Harris, managing director of Lighthouse Mortgage and Protection Solutions, added: “Becoming a member of The Council was a natural progression for us.
“Equity release is a natural extension of this activity and has become an increasingly important area for our business in recent years.
“We are delighted to be part of the Council and look forward to working alongside it to help more people realise the value of equity release for retirement where appropriate.”
Stuart Wilson, channel marketing director of more 2 life, also commented on the new membership.“It is great news that Lighthouse Group has joined the Equity Release Council.
"The noise around later life lending within the industry is currently extremely positive and there is growing interest in equity release from brokers that are not currently offering advice on borrowing in retirement."
The protections associated with the council and its members include the no negative equity guarantee, the right to tenure and the ability to port a loan to a suitable property.
The membership of the council has taken the number of member firms up to 164.
