retirement funds

Misinformation About Reverse Mortgages

The word “misinformation” is used regularly by the news media, political figures, various social groups, and everyone claims they are sharing the truth about what is happening in our communities and countries.

Citizens are questioning the traditional sources of news and harbor doubts about what is accurate, true, a distortion, or a myth.   It is confusing and creates anxiety and a sense of helplessness.

Misinformation has distorted the truth about reverse mortgage for many years.  So much so, the distortions continue to circulate with older adults and their children and because of their unfounded beliefs, would never consider using one to have funds for care giving, or to eliminate and ongoing mortgage payment.

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Unfortunately, many Financial Advisors remain uninformed and embrace many of the same beliefs and would never consider their use for a client.   But what if their client is withdrawing funds from their investments to pay for a mortgage, medical costs, home repair, care giving fees?

And they liquidate their investments?  “poof”.   And their Advisor just lost a client due to poor financial advice.

Before anyone “writes off” considering using a reverse loan, Do the HUD Counseling and don’t ask for advice from your friends, neighbors, hairdresser, or doctor.   They are not qualified to answer your q uestions.

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Avoiding Liquidating Your Investments

Preserving Investment Portfolios

Retirees often have investment portfolios that they rely on to generate income during their retirement. However, market volatility and economic uncertainties can pose risks to these portfolios. A reverse mortgage can help mitigate these risks by providing an additional source of income, allowing retirees to preserve their investment portfolios.

By leveraging the equity in their home, retirees can use the funds from a reverse mortgage to cover their expenses, reducing the reliance on their investment portfolios. This allows them to ride out market downturns without being forced to sell investments at inopportune times. By preserving their investment portfolios, retirees can increase their chances of long-term financial success and maintain their desired lifestyle.

The #1 worry of older Americans is not their health, but outliving their money.   Drawing down on investments and savings can be costly due to possible tax complications and possibly running out of funds to meet monthly expenses.

Funds from a reverse loan can possibly eliminate risking losing investments by leaving them in place regardless of market conditions.

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Conclusion

A reverse mortgage offers a range of benefits that can empower retirees to maximize their assets and live a comfortable and worry-free life during retirement. From providing financial flexibility and security to helping cover medical expenses and caregiving costs, a reverse mortgage can be a valuable tool in enhancing your financial well-being.

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Covid-19 and Seniors at Risk

It has been a while since I have written anything in my blog, because like everyone else, my life was turned upside down with the pandemic and it’s destructive swath across the world, taking lives, ruining economies, creating fear, anxiety, and uncertainty.

Anyone who had a 401-K, some sort of a retirement plan or at the least, a savings account have seen them dashed, drained away and depleted within days and the Stock Market will continue to reel in uncertainty for most likely, a very long time.

Eventually, we will get through this terrible time, but if you are a senior, you may not have the ability to wait it out until the markets recover and are very worried about running out of money.  I am here to say, that this is the one time a senior has an advantage over younger people because they have an option that younger people don’t have.

If a senior age 62 or older, lives in their home  (even if they have a mortgage on it), they could apply for a reverse loan.   However, too many are afraid of them because they think the Lender will end up owning their home  (false),  they have to still make payments (false), there is “fine print” to trick them (false) and they are “too good to be true”.  (False again.)

  • The FHA HECM is the most regulated mortgage in the lending industry, to protect seniors from financial abuse.
  • Anyone who wants to apply for a reverse loan must complete telephone counseling with a HUD-approved Counseling Agency.
  • There are no mortgage payments, however, the borrower must continue to pay property taxes, Homeowner insurance and keep their home in good repair.
  • There are no restrictions on how the borrower uses their funds, except they are discouraged from buying annuities or other investment products.
  • They can remain in their home for their entire lives and leave it to their estate.

The reverse loan industry is seeing an increase in loan applications at this time because obviously money from a reverse loan will give them the safety and security they need and take away the fear and anxiety about running out of money.

The loan is safe, well-regulated and an ideal solution for all senior home-owners to consider right now.   From the time the HUD Counseling is completed, the loan processing time takes about 45 days, however, it might begin to take longer with the increase in applications.

Although I am located in California, anyone who reads this may contact me if you have questions.   I can point you in the right direction for a reverse loan consultant in your state.

Don’t hesitate.  If you have a home or Condo and you are old enough, you have this opportunity for financial security.  Look into a reverse mortgage.  Now.

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Money From Jumbo Reverse Loans

California obviously has the most expensive properties in the country and a very high rate of citizens who are seniors but are carrying mortgages on their homes which are preventing them from retiring due to mortgage debt.

Many working seniors would like to retire but they can’t because of the ongoing mortgage payments and sometimes they find themselves withdrawing funds from their retirement investments to make the payment each month.

And depending on how many years are left on the mortgage, many are concerned about running out of money to make the payments and the other monthly obligations.

The average home value in California generally exceeds the HUD Lending Limit that is currently at $679,650 and if a homeowner has a home with a great deal more equity than the FHA HECM would allow them to withdraw, then a Jumbo reverse loan would be an additional option for consideration.

See what my clients are saying!

There are many new Jumbo loan programs to choose from that are superior to the FHA HECM in many aspects and are considerably less expensive in regards to fees.   Here are some highlights and are subject to change in the future.

  • Maximum loan amounts to 4 MM
  • Fixed rates or a LOC
  • 2nd T.D’s for those who would like access to their equity but currently have a 1st T.D. in place with a favorable interest rate they wish to keep, preserving more of their equity.  This option can also be used as a 1st T.D.
  • Origination fees vary by the loan choice but are “none” to either 6K or 8K maximum.
  • No Mortgage Insurance Premiums.
  • Non-Recourse Loan.    The borrower continues to own their home.  No equity sharing or pre-payment penalties.  The property will go to the heirs of the borrowers when they  (the borrowers) have passed away.
  • Can be used to purchase a home.  “Right-Sizing/Down Sizing”.
  • No payments are required other than the borrower must continue to pay property taxes, Homeowners Insurance, and HOA fees and keep the property well maintained.
  • No loan terms.
  • Borrowers must be at least age 60 or 62.   It depends upon the loan choice to determine the minimum age.
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Reverse Loan Choices

Most of the reverse loans that are originated are the FHA HECM program and over the years has been the “workhorse” for allowing seniors to utilize their home’s equity without having to qualify for a mortgage payment.

And as of this post, that continues to be the most commonly used reverse mortgage, however, in the last few years, another option has become available to seniors, especially those who have expensive properties at one million dollars or more.

The FHA HECM loan has a cap on the value of the subject property   ( As of 2018) of $679,650 and the new loan will use that as the maximum appraised value, a percentage of “that” and the youngest borrower’s age to determine the amount of money the senior will receive at the close of escrow.

But what if you want more money than it will provide or you have a large mortgage you want to be paid off, but the funds in the HECM are insufficient to achieve this goal?

A Jumbo proprietary reverse mortgage might be the solution because the loan will consider properties valued as much as 6MM and as low as $700,000 and the interest rates are “fixed”.   An additional benefit would be if someone lives in a Condo that is not on the approved FHA Condo list (That means they cannot do a HECM), a proprietary Jumbo reverse loan is the answer to this common problem.

An additional benefit to using this loan is that the Closing Costs are less than the FHA HECM because the borrower is not being charged the MIP insurance premium that all FHA loans require.   And some are not charging an Origination fee, making the loan much more inexpensive to the borrower in comparison to the  HECM.

As more lenders are offering Jumbo reverse loans and the industry evolves to meet the demand for them, I am sure that there will be new programs and opportunities for seniors to access the equity in their homes into the future making their retirement years more affordable and comfortable.

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