Lifesavers Part 1: Preventing foreclosure

Preventing Foreclosure

How To Prevent Foreclosure With Reverse MortgagePersonal success stories are a powerful vehicle to imprint the value of a product or service in potential clients’ minds. The following true tale will brighten your prospects’ holiday season.

Reverse Mortgage To Prevent Foreclosure

Reverse mortgage was a lifesaver for 77-year-old Isidoro, who had been in foreclosure due to the current economy. By the time he contacted Security One Lending, Isidoro was on the verge of losing his home to foreclosure within a few months. He was faced with moving out of his home and trying to find a rental somewhere on a Social Security income of just $800 a month, which would have left him with precious little money for food and other necessities.

Security One’s loan advisor quickly realized that the home’s value was in decline — something many Americans are experiencing now. Chase Bank had tried for the better part of a year to “short sale” the home, with no offers. Fortunately, the bank has a program to accept a reverse mortgage in lieu of a short sale.

Security One Lending negotiated with Chase Bank over several months — and several foreclosure extensions — to ultimately shave a whopping $182,000 from the principal note balance. Additionally, the loan agent was able to drastically reduce the reverse mortgage loan fees to allow the client to qualify, and have his existing Chase Bank loan paid off in full — which kept him from losing his home.

Isidoro retains full title to his home, and can never lose the house due to non-payment. That’s a true holiday gift!

In Part 2, we’ll hear from seniors for whom reverse mortgage means relief from financial stress.

 

October 2011 Top 100 Lenders Report

reverse mortgage news

*** HERE’S LINK TO OCTOBER REPORT DUE TO BAD LINK. ***
Our email generated wrong hyperlink.

Download the October Top 100 HECM Lenders Report Here

While Wells Fargo’s trailing HECM endorsements remain in the system, we are beginning to see a pattern in the top 10 HECM lenders in recent months. Even if we experience lower endorsement volume industry-wide for fiscal year 2012 the top players will most likely see tremendous gains in endorsements as market opportunities are seized upon.

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Just another Manic Monday: Friday’s Food for Thought

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Do you dread Mondays? If so here are a few tips to help break the cycle:

  • Friday review: Time block Monday, organize paperwork, schedule call backs, empty inbox and email
  • Get back to you…. Emails requiring a response received late Friday can be responded to with “ I will take a look at this… Monday”
  • Shift your calendar (Sunday as first day)
  • If you work from home start some Monday tasks Sunday (1 hour) and prep your plan (if you didn’t do it Friday)
  • Daily voicemail

 

House Rich, Cash Poor?

Meeting Seniors Financial Challenges

Many people look forward to retirement as a time of leisure, when they can finally relax and do what they wish: take a trip, play golf, or embrace a lifelong passion such as music or art.

But if they’re hurting for money, none of these dreams will be easily realized. A recent study from Banker’s Life & Casualty found 14 percent of Baby Boomers have no retirement savings, while 55 percent of middle-income Boomers’ retirement accounts have balances under $100,000. The good news: many of these soon-to-be-retirees have significant equity in their homes.

The evolution of the reverse mortgage industry can serve the new Baby Boom seniors, who may be bewildered to suddenly find themselves house rich, yet cash poor.

Here are three key elements of reverse mortgages, then and now:

  • 1961: The first reverse mortgage is created by a savings and loan executive as an act of kindness, to help a struggling widow make ends meet;
  • 1989: Reverse mortgages become a federally insured program through the Housing and Community Development Act, signed into law by President Reagan;
  • 2000: HUD begins requiring third-party reverse mortgage counseling as a consumer safeguard. Shortly thereafter, telephone counseling (in addition to in-person counseling) becomes available.

Today, with reverse mortgage information available through AARP and HUD, and backed by FHA insurance, reverse mortgages are a viable way for qualified seniors to tap their home’s equity to meet living expenses in later years.

Two common concerns you may also want to address at the outset:

  • A homeowner can’t “outlive” the life of the loan. As longevity spirals upward, this has become a frequent misperception. There is no reason for a client to fear losing their home with a reverse mortgage, as long as at least one borrower remains on the property, and pays the property taxes and insurance on time.
  • The reverse mortgage never has to be repaid by the aging homeowner, unless and until the property owner decides to move or sell, or vacates the home for more than one year.

Insurance fund for RMs looking healthy: Industry Leader Update

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HUD Secretary says fund backing reverse mortgages looks good…

The lackluster condition of of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance fund in fiscal year 2010 lead to some sweeping changes which included a reduction of principal limit factors, an increase of ongoing FHA insurance and the introduction of the Saver.

What changes can we anticipate when the insurance fund’s actuarial report is released this November if any? The housing market aside there are factors that have improved the overall financial health of this fund which backs federally-insured reverse mortgages.