Financial Planner: Reverse Mortgages Can Offer Path to Retirement ‘Paycheck’

          Financial Planner: Reverse Mortgages Can Offer Path to Retirement ‘Paycheck’

Managing finances in retirement can be difficult for a senior, most especially if someone is already strapped for cash. That makes the possibility of regular cash flow in addition to pre-existing benefit programs very attractive, and reverse mortgages can offer some seniors a viable path toward just such a path.

This is according to a new article appearing at NerdWallet written by Certified Financial Planner and author Liz Weston.

“Your expenses don’t end when your paychecks do, but creating a reliable income stream in retirement can be tricky,” Weston writes. “The right choices can result in sustainable income for the rest of your life. The wrong choices could leave you uncomfortably short of cash.”

While the first and most prominent recommendation revolves around maximizing Social Security benefits by deferring payments until age 70, finding other sources of guaranteed income can also help achieve a senior’s retirement financing goals.

“Ideally, fixed expenses in retirement would be covered by guaranteed income, such as Social Security and pensions, so that your basic lifestyle isn’t jeopardized by stock market fluctuations,” Weston writes.

Citing finance researcher Dr. Wade Pfau, two paths that could help create more guaranteed income could be an income annuity or a reverse mortgage.

“Another option could be a reverse mortgage, a loan that can convert some of your home equity into a stream of monthly checks,” she writes. “If you have a lot of equity but still have a mortgage, a reverse mortgage could pay off your loan and eliminate those monthly payments.”

Other tips to help retirees stabilize their finances in their post-working years include leaning on traditions like the “4% rule,” which financial advisors often suggest and which involves withdrawing 4% of your portfolio in the first year, before adjusting the amount for inflation each following year. Historically, this strategy has lowered the risk of depleting finances, Weston writes.

“Some planners, however, worry that 4% may be too high given current low interest rates and high stock valuations,” she adds. “The ‘Spend Safely in Retirement’ method, which [Stanford researcher Steve] Vernon created with the help of the Society of Actuaries, recommends using annual withdrawal rates based on the IRS’ required minimum distribution rules.”

Still, creating a “retirement paycheck” is often only a first step to preparing for finances in retirement. For instance, emergency funds for unexpected expenses will still need to be allocated, and retirees are also encouraged to make plans for other necessities like long-term care in the future, Weston says.

Courtesy of Liz Weston, Nerd Wallet

Shawna McDonald, Reverse Mortgages Only Loan Officer has specialized solely in reverse mortgage loans for 11 years and has successfully completed hundreds of them. Approved with 10 of the largest reverse mortgage lenders in the nation, including AAG (American Advisors Group). She is available by appointment; her local office, Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage, is located at 412 E. Main St. Suite N, Grass Valley, (530) 497-3010. Her website is http://www.SierraFoothillsReverse.com. NMLS #271335 DRE #00585530 Borba Investments, Auburn, CA Company NMLS #76801 DRE# #01386892

Reverse Mortgage Updates & Tidbits April 2019

 

The end of 1^st quarter 2019 has arrived; here are some interesting new items that have popped up in reverse mortgage lending:

• The Housing and Urban Development Agency (HUD) increased the recognized home value for a reverse mortgage loan in California from a maximum of $679,650 to $726,525. For homes valued above $726,525 RM proprietary jumbo loans are available with a home value maximum of 4 million.

• Purchase RM loans are increasing in popularity; however the need to plan early for a RM purchase loan pre-approval, before putting the current home up for sale, is imperative. As with all loans, there is income documentation, credit scoring, and for RM loans the addition of the HUD mandated reverse mortgage counseling, all documentation should be completed with a reverse mortgage loan officer before being caught in the panic of: “Yikes, our home sold so fast, we need to put an offer in on another home, but have no reverse mortgage loan officer          pre-approval letter to go with a purchase offer”.
• HUD RM rules do not allow for short term rentals of a “granny” unit, formal name: accessory dwelling unit (ADU) if the home owner has a RM loan. However, traditional longer term rentals of an ADU are allowed, such as a 1 year lease. I’ve met with several clients who rely on ADU income from a short term VRBO or Airbnb rental arrangement, and have declined to move forward with a RM credit line loan to further increase their retirement income because they wanted to keep the short term rental option of their ADU. Other clients concluded their short term rental was a hassle; they had trouble with partiers, and the final straw being the need to stick around and not travel in case the short term tenant couldn’t seem to get the heater working. These clients stopped short term renting and used the RM credit line income to supplant the lost rental income. (On March 26^th, 2019 the County of Nevada moved to ban the use of ADU’s for short term rentals in Ordinance SR-19-0157 with a few exceptions).
• The HECM program (“HECM” Home Equity Conversion Mortgage is the formal name for a reverse mortgage loan) is designed to be budget-neutral, without reliance on Congressional appropriations. Recent conservative changes to the RM program have moved it to be self sustaining and generating a positive cash flow.

Hello, for more in depth reverse mortgage information from Shawna McDonald, Reverse Mortgage Loan officer serving Grass Valley, Nevada City, Penn Valley and Alta Sierra, the author of this newspaper article,  visit my website SierraFoothillsReverse.com or better yet call for an appointment, I’m all about anything reverse mortgage !

Shawna McDonald, Reverse Mortgage Loan Officer, for 10 years has specialized exclusively in reverse mortgage loans & successfully completed hundreds of them. She is available by appointment in her downtown Grass Valley office for a no-obligation consultation. If you move forward, TLC guaranteed throughout the loan process. Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage (530) 497-3010. NMLS #271335 | CalDRE #00585530 Borba Investments Inc. Company NMLS #76801 |Company CalDRE # 01446165 These materials are not from, and were not approved by HUD or FHA

Reverse Mortgage Line of Credit or Conventional Line of Credit?

From Shawna McDonald at Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage, located in downtown Grass Valley:  “Hello and Happy Spring to Seniors in Grass Valley, Penn Valley, Nevada City and surrounding areas. “

Spring is finally here and I wanted to share on my blog an article I recently wrote for our local newspaper The Union:

Reverse Mortgage Line of Credit or Conventional Line of Credit?

Two sets of clients consulted me with identical decisions: having retired, they sold large homes, paid all cash for smaller homes and modest remainder funds went to savings. Year one on retirement income went ok, however modest remainder savings for emergencies and little extras proved insufficient, sleepless nights ensued: “What if the roof and car went out?” Their question: Should we do a reverse mortgage credit line loan or a conventional credit line loan, aka a “HELOC”?

Having met with me, a reverse mortgage loan specialist and then independently with a conventional banker, both couples came to the same conclusions; a reverse mortgage credit line was the best option for them. Why? Unlike a RM credit line loan, a “HELOC”, requires monthly payments, is for a fixed period of time, and may require a future reset to a higher monthly payment. Both couples planned to use the proceeds of the HELOC to pay the monthly HELOC payment, therefore, realizing that when the HELOC credit line ran out, they would be forced to sell their homes if they weren’t qualified to refinance and take out more money to keep up with the payments. This risk potential was causing considerable distress, they wanted to age in place in their homes. Additionally, if one or the other passed, due to a then diminished household income and little life insurance in place; the remaining spouse would be required to go through the upheaval of selling the home because of an inability to make the monthly HELOC payment.

A HELOC typically has features which alarm me if used as a financial tool for seniors: A HELOC lender may reduce available HELOC funds or freeze the funds under certain conditions. This is NOT allowed with a RM credit line loan, RM loans are government supervised, insured by FHA and cannot be reduced, altered, or frozen; however, a RM loan does have a higher cost than a HELOC for these safety/insurance guarantees. As with any loan type, keeping current on property taxes and insurance is required.

The RM credit line loan will be titled like any loan, the borrowers remain owners of the home, the lender does NOT own the home, (a common RM myth). Regardless of the remaining amount in the RM credit line, both borrowers or the remainder borrower, if one predeceases the other, may stay in the home for their lifetime(s), sell and keep the remaining equity, or bequeath remaining equity to heirs, as they choose.

Shawna McDonald, Loan Officer, for 10 years has dedicated herself to specializing in reverse mortgage loans, she has successfully completed hundreds of them. Call Shawna to discuss your retirement goals: by private appointment or call for her next seminar date. Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage 412 E. Main Street Grass Valley (530) 497-3010. NMLS #271335 | CalBRE #00585530 Borba Investments Inc. Company NMLS #76801 |Company BRE # 01446165 These materials are not from, and were not approved by HUD or FHA

 

 

Purchase Reverse Mortgages Grow in Popularity

BUYING A HOME IN RETIREMENT ~ But I Thought I’d Have to Pay all Cash !

 

This real estate season of 2016 I am seeing home buyers 62 years of age and older utilizing in greater numbers the Reverse Mortgage Purchase Loan; a loan that expands home buying power and conserves a nest egg from the sale of an existing home. Here’s an example:

Wanting to downsize, Karen and Jim are retired 76 year olds whose home sold for $550,000.Their replacement home costs $400,000, however their retirement income does not qualify for a conventional loan, they thought their only option was to pay cash, doing so leaves them $150,000 from their home sale, not as large a nest egg as hoped for.

Enter the RM Purchase Loan:  income qualifying is to prove ability to meet on-going property taxes, home insurance, (and HOA) obligations; thus qualifying for a RM Purchase Loan is less stringent than for a conventional loan. On a home valued at $400,000, Karen and Jim’s down payment is $171,000 (43% of the purchase price), a far cry from paying all cash of $400,000. The balance of the purchase price plus fees is their RM mortgage. Just as with all reverse mortgages, they will be monthly mortgage payment free.

 THE BIG NEWS: instead of having a nest egg of $150,000 from the sale of their original home had they paid all cash for the replacement home, the RM Purchase Loan allowed them a residual nest egg of $379,000. Could a RM Purchase Loan have been used to buy a higher priced home than their original home of $550,000? Generally speaking yes; folks I have worked with have obtained their dream home with a RM Purchase Loan.

A RM Purchase Loan is titled with Karen and Jim as owners of the home, (they do NOT give up ownership of the home, a common RM misconception). The home can be sold by them or heirs, the reverse mortgage paid off, and they or heirs keep the remaining equity. As with any home loan, it is required that property tax, maintenance, and home insurance obligations be kept current.

This is an exciting program opening up more possibilities for seniors, give me a call if you would like to see your personalized loan scenario and obtain program details.

Shawna McDonald, Loan Officer has successfully completed hundreds of reverse mortgages. Approved with 8 of the largest reverse mortgage lenders in the nation, she is available by appointment; her local office, Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage, is located at 412 E. Main St. Suite N, Grass Valley, (530) 497-3010. The website is www.SierraFoothillsReverse.com.

INMLS #271335 BRE 00585530 Borba Investments, Auburn, CA Company NMLS #76801 Company BRE #01456165

The Changed Faces of Reverse Mortgage Loan Clients

  I  hope that when I retire I can do crafty things like, say in October, make leaf lined candle jars, because I just never seem to have time  while working full time at what I love:  helping Grass Valley, Nevada City and Penn Valley seniors stay in their homes monthly mortgage payment free, with a reverse mortgage, the “peace of mind” loan. Truth be told, I love what I do so much that I just may never get to craft leafy type things anytime soon.

If you want to skip this blog post and go directly to my website or contact me for an appointment, here you go: http://www.SierraFoothillsReverse.com or (530) 497-4010.

This is a non-technical post, lately I’ve done mostly technical type blog posts about different aspects of reverse mortgages, but as I enter my 8th year of full time specialization in reverse mortgages I’m reflecting on the changed faces of whom I am helping with the “peace of mind loan” once the loan is complete.   I have had almost all my clients of late call it such when we’ve either paid off their existing mortgage, created a credit line for them, or a combination of both, a few opt for lifetime incomes. When I check back in with clients, to a person, they all express the same things: that they were losing sleep over a depleted savings accounts and worrying about the inevitable repair, health crisis, or need for a newer car, all things in the back of their minds they knew could not be covered by savings, and that this loan had restored their peace in life and ability to enjoy life fully without nagging worry and sleep loss. Or, for the some of my clients, who could cover these types of expenses, but to do so the concern was they had to take more than mandatory draws out of a retirement fund, and then often they worried that they had “wasted money” to pay for a tax consequence in doing so.  Or the worry over NDFA, (No Damn Fooling Around) industry acronym for property taxes are due in November, must be paid by December, due in February must be paid by April. Ugh, worry over property taxes or the ever increasing fire and casualty costs that come with living in our beautiful mountain area, that’s no fun.

Often in the initial meeting or workshop seminar the clients I meet have worried faces, when the loan is complete there is a spring again in their step, a look on their faces of a weight lifted. Years ago I owned a successful real estate company in Sebastopol in Sonoma County, few women back then in all of Sonoma County had accomplished this, I was proud of having done so. Of course I was happy when the day came to hand over the keys to excited new homeowners, but nothing compares to the feeling I get now when I call clients to tell them we’ve just completed their reverse mortgage loan, and then a week or so later we meet for me to give them a thank you gift, because that is when I see happier faces and hear them feel free to express to me their feelings of relief and peace of mind restored, that’s their gift to me.

It’s a small community, even further down the line I run into my clients here and there post loan, that’s when I receive another  gift from clients, when they tell me how their life has changed post reverse mortgage: what new things they now can do, share with me a picture or two of a trip to see grandchildren, a motorhome taken out of storage and pictures of a trip, (where as before the gas had become too much of a budget buster to take trips at all), a falling apart deck now repaired and used for bbq’s and family gatherings, one set of clients whose mortgage was paid off through a reverse mortgage were still working part time well into their 70’s to cover the monthly payment, their comment was “we now have time to lay in a hammock and read a book overlooking the pond on our land, in our home”. Yes, I’m the lucky one indeed.

~Shawna McDonald, Loan Officer NMLS #271335, Real Estate Broker 00585530

Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage 412 E. Main Street, Grass Valley 530-497-3010

http://www.SierraFoothillsReverse.com

The Reverse Mortgage Credit Line: Growth Feature, Government Guaranteed & No Monthly Payments

Seniors Look to the Reverse Mortgage for all Sorts of Purposes  Including Travel

This is a reprint from an article I wrote for the Grass Valley Union Newspaper

A trend I see in my local Grass Valley Reverse Mortgage office: seniors establishing a reverse mortgage credit line not because they “need to”, but on standby as part of their overall retirement financial picture for the peace of mind it gives and maybe just a wee bit of extra travel. Financial planners in increasing numbers are suggesting the reverse mortgage as part of client retirement plans and an excellent way to stop 401 draws, beyond the required, as a way to allow retirement accounts to grow again during this time period of a stock market rebound. A common question I’m asked: “does the RM credit line work like a regular credit line?” It does, and it doesn’t.

A RM credit line allows a borrower to access funds for any purpose, as does a conventional credit line. They are also similar in that borrowers continue to own the home and borrowers are required to keep property taxes, maintenance and insurance current. However, unlike a conventional line of credit, there is no monthly repayment, it is insured by the government, and the dollar amount a senior is eligible for is guaranteed for life, it may never be reduced or the account closed at a bank’s discretion, which unfortunately is a trait of conventional credit lines.

 A RM credit line has another aspect: the “credit line growth feature”. That is to say: the dollar amount that may be borrowed grows larger over time as the borrower ages. When I teach my monthly workshops here in Grass Valley we go in-depth on this feature. In short for this article: the RM program guarantees continual growth on the unused portion of the credit line at the current interest rate on the reverse loan plus 1.25%. The reverse mortgage itself, as well as this credit line growth feature, was the brain child of President Ronald Regan and his financial advisors.

 Let’s look at the numbers in action!

“Betty” is 72 years old, $475,000 home appraisal, and per the HUD formula her credit line eligibility is approximately $273,000. The current interest rate that will accrue on spent funds is 3.4% plus 1.25% for the ongoing FHA mortgage insurance premium, for a total of 4.65% approximately. Her growth rate on funds she has not spent will also be 4.65%. (The combined rate on spent funds will always equal the rate of growth on funds reserved in the unspent credit line.)

Betty initially borrows $42,000 to pay off her first loan, interest rate of 6%, a credit card, interest rate19%, a car loan, 8% and rolled in initial loan costs . Her remaining credit line is approximately $225,000. She has swapped out higher interest rates on these accounts for the 4.65% total RM rate and will no longer have monthly payments on them.

OK ~ DRUM ROLL: In this scenario how much will her credit line borrowing ability have grown in 5 years? It will have grown from $225,000 to $282,000 approximately. In 10 years? Her borrowing ability will have grown to $355,000 approximately. (Spending out of the credit line is of course allowed, this example is a simplified one.)

The RM credit line allows seniors the financial ability to “age in place”: keep their home, privacy, and sense of control. The reverse mortgage may also be used to fund secure living in a dementia community for one homeowner/borrower as long as the other homeowner/borrower keeps the home as their principle residence. It’s a good idea to get the credit line in place while all borrowers are competent and able to fully understand the program.

Shawna McDonald Loan Officer, has successfully completed hundreds of reverse mortgages and is approved with    8 reverse mortgage lenders, ensuring clients receive competitive fees and great rates all within the privacy of a local full service office, Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage,  located at 412 E. Main Street Suite N, Grass Valley.                (530) 497-3010. Her website is www.SierraFoothillsReverse.com.  

Why not call to reserve a place in my next complimentary reverse mortgage workshop? Given monthly, these workshops are a fun way to learn about reverses in a relaxed atmosphere, with a complimentary catered meal. In addition, you’ll leave the workshop with a comprehensive packet of information including a dvd. Typical feedback from participants is that they leave feeling more confident that they have the facts about reverse mortgages and were able to get their questions answered one on one with a skilled specialist ~ licensed loan officer.

The opinions expressed here are solely those of Shawna McDonald, Loan Officer/Real Estate Broker. Copyright © 2015. All Rights Reserved, duplication and distribution prohibited. Shawna McDonald NMLS #271335 CA-BRE # 00585530 DBA Sierra Foothills Reverse Mortgage and Borba Investments Inc, DBA MLS Reverse Mortgage Auburn, CA NMLS #76801 BRE #01456165 ~ HUD approved lender.