America’s #1 Rated Reverse Lender

Timeframe to Vacate Home After Reverse Mortgage

August 19, 2023     85 comments

Hello ARLO, My father passed away in October 2018.  He had a live-in caretaker for several years.  I decided to sell the house in California, while the caretaker is occupying the home to keep the property safe and away from squatters and facilitate the viewing.  One offer from a buyer fell through, and the caretaker approached my agent wanting to put in an offer Celink has been working on the short sale approval on his offer for 2 months, with very little communication and feedback.  The appraisal from the lender... Read Full Article

Reverse Mortgage Servicing FAQs

July 15, 2023     no comments

  HOW CAN I REQUEST FUNDS FROM MY LINE OF CREDIT? If you selected a line of credit as part of your payment plan option, you may request those funds by sending a written request to the servicing department.  You will receive a Line of Credit draw request form with each monthly statement, provided you have available funds remaining.  The draw request form can be mailed to us (our address is on the form) or faxed toll-free at (866) 616-2160. Once we receive your signed request, it will be processed. ... Read Full Article

4 Ways You Can Lose Your Home With a Reverse Mortgage

June 17, 2023     no comments

A reverse mortgage can be a powerful tool for an American senior aged 62 or older to create a new source of cash flow from his or her home equity. With a Federal Housing Administration-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), the borrower still retains ownership of the property while continuing to live there over the course of the loan. He or she is not required to make monthly mortgage payments during that time. Reverse mortgages are often misunderstood, and a common misperception is the idea that in... Read Full Article

Facing a Reverse Mortgage Foreclosure? Here Are Your Options.

May 28, 2023     18 comments

Hello Arlo, My mother passed away a year ago. She had taken a reverse mortgage on her home. We later discovered that my mother had not been paying her property taxes, and her home had now been foreclosed. Will they auction the home off? And exactly where do the proceeds of the auction go? If the home sells in auction for more than the reverse mortgage amount. Then where does the rest of the money go? My mother's home is valued at approximately $250.000. I'm not sure, but I think... Read Full Article

What Suze Orman Says About Reverse Mortgages (2011-Present)

May 23, 2023     2 comments

Personal finance experts often address reverse mortgage questions and concerns from the general public, which typically involves a discussion of the pros and cons of these financial products.  Suze Orman, known for years of experience providing personal financial expertise, including hosting the Suze Orman Show on CNBC for over a decade, has often answered questions and provided her opinions on reverse mortgages.  In addition to her time on CNBC, Orman has written 10 New York Times personal finance bestsellers and has frequently appeared as a guest on television shows; today, she... Read Full Article

HUD Can Help Seniors by Raising the Reverse Mortgage Floor Back to 5%

May 20, 2023     1 comment

HUD has always been about serving the underserved. They even issued a Strategic Plan in March of 2022 outlining 5 areas they would concentrate on helping serve the community. You can find that plan online here. What you cannot find anywhere in that 82-page plan is a mention of senior homeowners who have been decimated by high-interest rates and HUD cutbacks in the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) reverse mortgage program since 2009 when HUD first started seeing problems with the HECM reverse mortgage program due in part to a... Read Full Article

Protecting Your Home from Reverse Mortgage Foreclosure Threat

May 10, 2023     2 comments

Dear ARLO, I just returned from the hospital, where my uncle was transported by his neighbor, thinking he was having a heart attack.  My uncle said he almost passed out after receiving a letter from his reverse mortgage lender threatening to foreclose. I was told he may be discharged tomorrow, but I need to quickly step in to help him, a retired veteran.  Before wasting your time, I read some comments on this site and found a few similar ones, but I need clarification, so I am asking for help... Read Full Article

Are reverse mortgages FDIC-insured, and do banking failures affect them?

March 20, 2023     no comments

This will be welcoming news if you are worried about reverse mortgages being non-FDIC insured. Fortunately for reverse mortgage borrowers, reverse mortgages are not FDIC insured and, therefore, are not endangered by all the turmoil with banks at this time. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) guarantees the reverse mortgage. Specifically, HUD guarantees that the borrower can access the full line of credit. Rates had been creeping up quickly in recent weeks, driving borrowers’ available funds on reverse mortgages down. Still, when Signature Bank... Read Full Article

Reverse Mortgages Are No Longer a “Last Resort”

January 18, 2023     2 comments

I've been told to wait on taking a reverse mortgage as a last resort.  Why? Let me start by saying that we are a reverse mortgage lender who will be the first to tell you that reverse mortgages are not for everyone.  But that's true of any financial product, and no loan is perfect for everyone. A reverse mortgage can be a great financial tool when used by the right borrower and for the right purposes.  You need to assess your circumstances to see if this is right based on... Read Full Article

5 Options When You Don’t Qualify for a Reverse Mortgage

December 15, 2022     2 comments

Many people who applied for a reverse mortgage sometime in the past but then applied again over the last year were surprised to see that when they looked at the numbers again, they received a lot less money now.  For some, the difference was so great that even though the past figures allowed them enough to repay the existing mortgage on the home, the new amount available to them was not even sufficient to pay off the balance of the existing loan. This left borrowers frustrated and, in some cases,... Read Full Article