Hello Arlo,My brother, who is 75, lives with his significant other, aged 70. They have been together for over 25 years. Although they never married, they believe they are in a common-law marriage in Texas. The house they live in was inherited from her mother. It has no liens or mortgages, and the deed is solely in her name (my brother's name is not on it). In 2012, she took out a reverse mortgage when the house was appraised at $93,000, primarily due to many needed repairs. Currently, comparable homes in their neighborhood are valued in the $200,000 range or higher. Her reverse mortgage was for around $45,000, of which a large sum was used to replace the carpeting, tile flooring, and other things. They received their final payment this month and have letters from the reverse mortgage company suggesting they might consider another loan. This leads to my questions:I believe that if she were to pass away and be the only name on the reverse mortgage, my brother would be in a difficult situation unless he could prove their common-law marriage status is valid and that he inherited the home in her will. She has no living family members or children and has a handwritten holographic will, leaving everything to my brother. Even then, I expect that if he inherited the house, he would have to pay off the existing reverse mortgage along with probate and court fees, possibly by obtaining another reverse mortgage. I'm unsure about the required paperwork, but it would likely be substantial. I have warned him that he might be homeless if she passes, and he has no legal right to continue living in the house. I also raised the issue of him getting a second reverse mortgage to pay off the first one if the "five times rule" I read about in an earlier post is invalid. He cannot afford a conventional loan as he only receives about $1,100 monthly in SSA benefits, and taxes, insurance, and utilities would consume most of that.I told them that they would not have to repay any of the reverse mortgages they have now until either she passes away or sells the house. If this happens, is there an estimated timeframe for taking care of this if she passes? Would they try to force my brother out of the house? How do the appraisals requested by a reverse mortgage company like yours reflect the house's value? Does it consider comps in the area and then deduct any obvious repairs that need to be made, or how does it work? I reason that their house is now "appraised by the CAD" at around $180,000, but I believe it is worth more if fixed up. Thank you for your help.

By Michael G. Branson

CEO · 45 yrs in mortgage banking

Edited by Cliff Auerswald

President · All Reverse Mortgage, Inc.