ARLO announcing reduction of reverse mortgage costs in Florida

The Cost of Reverse Mortgages in Florida

Florida has long been one of the most expensive states in which to close a reverse mortgage due to the fees charged by the state.  In addition to already having higher title insurance costs and higher hazard insurance costs, Florida seniors have had to endure the state charging documentary stamp taxes on every mortgage recorded, determined by the face amount on the Mortgage.

Impact on Seniors

The significance of this is that on a reverse mortgage, that face amount is 1.5 times the home’s appraised value or the maximum claim amount, whichever is less.  This meant that Florida seniors have had to pay documentary tax stamps on more than the loan amount, an amount based on more than the property value for reverse mortgages.

Legislative Relief

Effective July 1, 2024 (CS/HB 7073), a new law brings significant tax reductions for Floridians. For seniors, this means a substantial decrease in the documentary stamp taxes collected on reverse mortgages, which, on July 1st, will now be based on the actual money borrowed.  This game-changer relieves them of a significant financial burden!

For borrowers with a home worth $500,000, the face amount of the instrument being recorded was $750,000, meaning that was the amount on which the documentary taxes were being determined, even though the actual amount the borrowers received was substantially less.  On more expensive homes, the HUD Lending Limit is currently $1,149,825.  150% or 1.5 times this amount would be $1,724,737.50, and again, this is not the amount of money the borrowers received, so the taxes paid far exceeded what the borrower would pay on a forward loan for the amount of money they receive in the loan solely because of the amount shown on the recorded instrument.

The amount on which the tax has been collected would be based on the amount on the face of the Mortgage recorded, even though borrowers would receive much less money in the loan.  This new legislation now corrects this inequity in fees charged, and the documentary taxes will be charged on the actual Principal Limit or the loan the borrowers will receive with the reverse mortgage, not the face amount of the instrument being recorded effective July 1, 2024.

The chart below shows the taxes at the current costs and the amount that will be effective July 1st.  Note that the amounts will change with the loan amount available to borrowers, which is affected by interest rates – these numbers are accurate based on today’s mortgage loan amounts as determined by the rates available on today’s date and are to be used for comparison purposes only but even if the amounts change, the savings are real and will also change accordingly.

Visualizing the Changes: A Comparative Chart

Examples of New Florida Reverse Mortgage Closing Tax

HOME VALUEPrincipal LimitPrevious Mortgage TaxNew Mortgage TaxTotal Savings
$200,000$80,600$1,050.00$282.10$767.90
$400,000$161,200$2,100.00$564.20$1,535.80
$600,000$241,800$3,150.00$846.30$2,303.70
$800,000$322,400$4,200.00$1,128.40$3,071.60
$1,000,000$403,000$5,250.00$1,410.50$3,839.50
$1,250,000$470,000$6,562.50$1,645.00$4,917.50
$1,500,000$564,000$7,875.00$1,974.00$5,901.00
$1,750,000$658,000$9,187.50$2,303.00$6,884.50
$2,000,000$752,000$10,500.00$2,632.00$7,868.00
Disclaimer: This table presents scenarios calculated with an assumed interest rate of 6.25% for a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) loan, applicable to properties valued up to $1,000,000 as of May 13, 2024. Scenarios for properties valued at $1,250,000 and above reflect proprietary (Jumbo) product rates as of the same date. All calculations assume the borrower is 70 years old.

Closing Thoughts

We recognize the unfortunate circumstances that led to Florida seniors paying higher taxes.  However, we commend the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association for their advocacy for the Florida legislature and the Governor for their swift action in rectifying this issue.