Reverse mortgages are hot. Baby boom demographics, inadequate retirement funding, and problems in the traditional mortgage market (pushing brokers into alternate products) have combined to make marketing of reverse mortgage products to senior citizen homeowners one of the hottest niches in the mortgage business.
And the effort is paying off for marketers. Federally-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) are the predominant type of reverse mortgage in the U.S. Recently, the number of HECMs originated has averaged about 9,000 per month, more than double the average in 2005. Moreover, about two-thirds of the total HECM reverse mortgages ever issued have been originated in the last two years.
Reverse mortgages are only available to homeowners age 62 and older who have paid off their mortgage or have only a small mortgage balance remaining. The sales pitch for these loans is enticing: tax-free retirement income for as long as you own the home – even for life; no monthly loan payments; no repayments until the home is sold, and payment options flexible enough to meet any need! In many cases a reverse mortgage is the ideal tool for senior...