American Advisors Group’s Newest Television Commercial Features Noted Academics
Orange, Calif. (February 10, 2016) – American Advisors Group (AAG), the leading reverse mortgage lender in the nation, today announced the launch of its new television commercial. The 120-second spot, depicting reverse mortgage as a viable retirement planning tool, is airing now and scheduled to run over the next quarter.
The spot features noted academics David W. Johnson, Ph.D., associate professor of finance at Maryville University, and Barbara Howard, MBA, finance; MA, gerontology and adjunct professor at University of Bridgeport. The two professors emphasize the importance of a reverse mortgage loan as a flexible financial solution during a time when traditional sources of retirement income may not provide enough financial stability for today’s retirees.
The commercial debuts as academics garner mainstream media coverage about a national crisis faced by older Americans—about two-thirds of seniors are not financially prepared for retirement. Financial experts are encouraging homeowners age 62 and older to consider converting their home equity as a means to help fund ongoing expenses, including medical costs and long-term care. The spot also highlights a reverse mortgage standby line of credit available for homeowners to use when they need it most.
“The new AAG commercial sheds light on how reverse mortgage loans are becoming widely accepted by academics and experts as a versatile financial solution to help seniors achieve retirement security,” AAG Chief Creative Officer Teague McGrath explains. He continues, “At AAG our mission is to help educate consumers on the advantages of this powerful tool, and the experts’ confidence in the product provides valuable third-party credibility.”
This is the first new commercial to be produced following the death of AAG national spokesperson Fred Thompson in November of 2015. The ad serves as a starting point for the company’s larger, multi-faceted marketing approach that will feature a complete refresh of AAG’s creative materials later in the year.
The ad will run across cable and national networks, including ABC, NBC and CBS. It can also be viewed here.
About American Advisors Group
American Advisors Group (AAG) is the nation’s leader in reverse mortgage lending. We are dedicated to helping American seniors convert a portion of their home equity, a largely untapped asset, to help fund their retirement needs.
AAG holds an A+ rating by the Better Business Bureau, has a 96 percent customer satisfaction rating and is a proud member of the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA). To learn more about American Advisors Group and reverse mortgages, please visit the company’s website at www.aag.com, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/AAGreverse and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AAGreverse.
1 Comment
It is interesting to once again hear the carefully worded script. It is mostly correct. The ad fails terribly, however, in not disclosing that Barbara Howard was a director at MetLife Bank to “create, develop, and deliver education to employees, business and industry partners on issues impacting older Americans via multiple platforms” (her words on LinkedIn) and that David Johnson was a reverse mortgage originator. While David holds a Ph.D., Barbara only holds a MBA.
David’s bias shows in his over the top statement that reverse mortgages should be “part of EVERYBODY’S retirement retirement plan.” (Emphasis added.) He sounds as if he is still selling (or as we say “educating about”) HECMs rather than providing an unbiased conclusion.
Barbara Howard exposed her lack of understanding on reverse mortgages when after describing the home as the largest asset of most of the middle class she exclaims: “Why not covert that asset into liquid funds and help yourself in retirement.” Unless a borrower has mandatory obligations of 90% or more of the principal limit, the mortgage can only convert into liquid assets, a portion of its potential total liquid assets until one year after closing unless it is a fixed HECM. Those with LESAs can only slowly yield a portion of the liquid assets to or for the borrower. Yet this is not a conversion of the home into liquid assets but rather it is a MORTGAGE. An unbiased finance professor in a reasoned presentation on the product would have provided a much different conclusion.
So while the ad is slick, it is also full of bias. These two academicians and former reverse mortgage originators only represent a handful of all of those who teach finance in universities across the United States.