Reverse Mortgages
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Snap Up a Reverse Mortgage Now
So says the Mortgage Professor, Jack Guttentag, an emeritus finance professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Guttentag’s main argument is that interest rates are so low that it’s a good idea to snap up the cash now. Low rates let you borrow more than you could borrow at higher rates. Guttentag […]
Coming Changes in Reverse Mortgages
Reverse mortgages help older homeowners stay in their homes by letting them spend home equity without selling the homes or writing monthly repayment checks. The number of reverse mortgages issued increases each year, and most of those mortgages are insured by the FHA. If the banks or other lenders misprice the mortgages and lose money, […]
Attacking Reverse Mortgages
For many years in Retirement Watch I’ve presented a balanced view of reverse mortgages. These are tools for seniors to draw down their home equity without having to move from their homes or make payments during their lifetimes. I’ve maintained they are good tools in some situations and detailed those situations. The new Consumer Financial […]
New Look in and Uses of Reverse Mortgages
Many retirees in coming years will need to use at least part of their home equity to fund retirement expenses. They should consider reverse mortgages, and they’ll find some recent changes make reverse mortgages more attractive. But some other changes also limit their use and impose more work and restrictions on homeowners. In the last […]
Managing Changes in Reverse Mortgages
The reverse mortgage market was roiled over the summer. But there’s no reason for panic. Those who already have reverse mortgages won’t be affected, and those who want them in the future should have adequate options, perhaps more options than before. There are more changes on the way, however, and these will affect those who […]
Updating Reverse Mortgages
The once sleepy reverse mortgage business suddenly is hopping with news. Yesterday I reported that Wells Fargo was withdrawing from the reverse mortgage market. Bank of America also is withdrawing from reverse mortgages. Both banks say the uncertainty about home prices makes the products too risky. Also, with home prices in decline fewer seniors have […]
Exiting Reverse Mortgages
A reverse mortgage can provide an older person with substantial cash while allowing him or her to remain in his home. Most home mortgages are insured by the federal government, making lenders willing to make what could be a risky bet on how long a person will live. The number of reverse mortgages written over […]
Benefiting from the New Reverse Mortgages
Reverse mortgages received several changes in the last six months or so. The changes make the mortgages more attractive in general and, unlike in the past, they can make some sense for relatively short-term cash needs. In a reverse mortgage, the homeowner with little or no mortgage on his home receives a loan. The loan […]
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