How a reverse mortgage helped our client live securely after losing a significant portion of income
Reverse mortgages can bring financial stability to seniors during their retirement years. Here’s a true story of one of our customers, who was able to greatly benefit from a reverse mortgage.
The Situation
Recently, our team helped a 75-year-old customer who was silently struggling to pay her bills. With the recent death of her husband, she lost half of her income. The woman had a small pension and social security income totaling $1,800 a month — which wasn’t enough to cover her mortgage payment plus all her other monthly expenses. As a result, she began accumulating credit card debt to pay for food and other necessities. After many months of pain and stress, she confided in a friend who introduced her to one of our Reverse Mortgage Specialists (RMS) to get help.
The Solution
After thoroughly reviewing her reverse mortgage options with our RMS, the client chose a reverse loan that eliminated $500 of fixed payments, provided a lump sum of cash that allowed her to buy a used car that she needed, and provided a line of credit for future needs. Our RMS explained that the client was very grateful to get her financial situation under control, because she called the RMS on closing day — in tears — expressing how thankful she was.
Is there someone in your life (ages 62+) who might benefit from a reverse mortgage? We offer complimentary consultations. Contact a trusted Reverse Mortgage Specialist at Waterstone Mortgage to get started.
It’s our goal to help senior citizens create a more financially stable and secure retirement.
These materials are not from HUD or FHA and were not approved by HUD or a government agency.
The only reverse mortgage insured by the U.S. Federal Government is called a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), and is only available through a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-approved lender. Not all reverse mortgages are FHA insured. When the loan is due and payable, some or all of the equity in the property that is the subject of the reverse mortgage no longer belongs to borrowers, who may need to sell the home or otherwise repay the loan with interest from other proceeds. A lender may charge an origination fee, mortgage insurance premium, closing costs and servicing fees (added to the balance of the loan). The balance of the loan grows over time and you are charged interest on the balance. Borrowers are responsible for paying property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, maintenance, and related taxes (which may be substantial). There is no escrow account for disbursements of these payments. A set-aside account can be set up to pay taxes and insurance and may be required in some cases. Borrowers must occupy home as their primary residence and pay for ongoing maintenance; otherwise the loan becomes due and payable. The loan also becomes due and payable (and the property may be subject to a tax lien, other encumbrance, or foreclosure) when the last borrower, or eligible non-borrowing surviving spouse, dies, sells the home, permanently moves out, defaults on taxes, insurance payments, or maintenance, or does not otherwise comply with the loan terms. Interest is not tax-deductible until the loan is partially or fully repaid.
