A productivity booster
According to the app’s creators, the more you train with Elevate, the more you’ll improve critical cognitive skills that are designed to boost productivity and self-confidence.
This app has clear visual images to follow and accessible ‘mini’ games to test your memory, focus, maths, comprehension and other mental skills. It’s also set up to get you logging in regularly, tracking your ‘streaks’ on its calendar and tweaking the difficulty levels as you become more adept, so you can tell that you are progressing.
Should you get on well and want to do more, you can sign up to the Pro subscription (£5.99 a month) to unlock more games and play them as often as you like.
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While reading and completing crosswords do help with mental stimulation, brain-training smartphone apps can stretch your mind in new ways every day. We’ve rounded up four of the best apps you can download for a free mental workout
Play your peers
This clever app boasts a collection of more than 40 mini games, each one developed by neuroscientists and game experts to challenge your cognitive skills. You can track your results and progress over time. And – if you like a bit of competition – you can see how you perform against other users in your age group.
The free version of the app has plenty to do, but a £3.99 monthly subscription lets you play the games as often as you like, plus it includes personalisation options and more stats. ■
ll over the UK, people are choosing to unlock some of the equity tied up in their homes as they reach retirement. While some use their tax-free cash to help pay regular bills or to support loved ones with a financial gift, others ease the financial pressure by using it to pay off existing debt.
Like thousands of others, Felicity Johnston and her husband, Chris, took out an interestonly mortgage in the Eighties. A couple of years ago, with the end of their mortgage term rapidly approaching, they needed to find a way to repay the loan.
“After my husband was made redundant, we couldn’t keep up with the payments, turning to our savings to supplement the shortfall. It left us in a lot of debt. We have a large family who live with us, so downsizing wasn’t an option.
“I started to enquire about equity release and found Key to be the most helpful. Our adviser was so efficient and really took care of us throughout the whole process.
“Paying off our existing mortgage means we can enjoy our retirement without that
Aburden. We also installed another bathroom with the money. “I would definitely recommend Key – there was no pressure. It’s taken a huge weight off our shoulders.”
With more people now discovering that their retirement may be longer and more expensive than they’d originally anticipated, many are looking at ways to pay off their existing mortgage without needing to sell up and move.
Key Equity Release has helped more than a million people decide if equity release is right for them and 25% of their customers have used some of the funds released from their home to pay off their existing mortgage.
Their specialist advisers will only make a recommendation after taking the time to understand your personal circumstances because the first thing to work out is whether equity release is the right thing for you.
Key will ensure you consider your other options and, if equity release isn’t right for you – they’ll tell you.