Misspent Money, Scams, Personal Stories & More

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The roundup of weekly HECM news

 

What do strippers, casinos, and groceries have in common? It’s bad enough to be forced to foot the bill of your own company’s audit and financial monitoring. Reverse mortgage servicer Ocwen Financial paid over $44 million dollars to cover the costs of monitoring services to Fidelity Information Services as part of their agreement with the state of California for its investigation of claims that Ocwen did not produce the required paperwork related to the state’s Homeowners Bill of Rights. The servicer alleges the auditor burned through the budgeted money allocated for a two year period in just 11 months, paying for strip clubs, casinos, liquor, and groceries. They also claim that FIS auditors watched videos on company time, left without clocking out, and inflated daily hours worked and mileage expenses. F.I.S. flatly denies the allegations. The auditing firm’s contract was terminated by the court under a new consent order.

download-1Fraud comes in all shapes and sizes and it wasn’t from a loan officer or financial professional. Court papers allege a Chicago contractor, Mark Diamond, of scamming more than $10 million in a repair scheme that targeted older homeowners . In all there are an alleged 122 victims- most women, African-American and in their 80’s.

Financial Assessment Accepted by Industry

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The origins of the now-accepted HECM Financial Assessment

Screen Shot 2017-05-18 at 10.19.25 AMDespite it’s initial chilly industry reception the HECM Financial Assessment has been accepted- so said HUD’s Phil Caulfield. During his remarks at the NRMLA western regional meeting in Huntington Beach Caulfield emphasized the importance of the assessment stating “if we hand’t done this, there probably would be a HECM program. It’s that important”.

Necessity is the mother of invention. Several factors contributed to the genesis of the Financial Assessment, but the two most notable were lenders seeking to reduce the risk of paying delinquent property charges before or during the prolonged foreclosure process, and the reputation risk of issuing loans to borrowers who would likely default on property charges and the subsequent public fallout from the resulting foreclosure.

In October 2011, FHA issued guidance that HECM lenders could consider an applicant’s credit history and financial capacity- perhaps in response to pressure from lenders seeking a public statement. The largest HECM lenders weighed whether to launch their own financial assessment guidelines in the hopes that other lenders would follow suit. MetLife was the first to venture into the uncharted waters of HECM underwriting in November 2011.  

When No Advice is Worse Than Bad Advice

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Professionals not providing all options can have devastating consequences

“Failing to provide a client with viable options can be just as damaging, if not worse than providing poor advice”

Screen Shot 2017-05-05 at 10.19.24 AMSuch is the case in a recent post I read on LinkedIn from Florian Steciuch. He wrote “ My definition of heartbreak – meeting with an 82 year old client who was given a 30 year mortgage when she bought her new town home last year. Recently she lost her part-time job, now has Social Security of [sic] $1300 with a mortgage P+I of $700. She already missed her property tax payment. She provided a down payment of 50% – this is a prime example of why the FHA HECM for Purchase was a far superior loan option. She would have had NO mortgage payment. She was not offered this option because her bank did not offer it. 80 year old home owners should not be taking on the risk of 360 months of mortgage payments if they have a substantial down payment.”

Perhaps this 82 year old would have averted disaster had she read an article similar to Jack Guttentag’s, aka ‘The Mortgage Professor’ latest contribution in the Huffington Post, “Purchasing a House with a HECM Reverse Mortgage: How to Do It Right”. Guttentag opens stating “Purchasing a house with a HECM reverse mortgage has the great advantage that it does not impose a monthly payment burden on the borrower.”

 

Reverse Mortgage News Roundup

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This Week’s Top Reverse Mortgage Stories

1- CFPB Complaints on the Rise- The CFPB has been busy collecting consumer complaints. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reports an increase of 172% increase in reverse mortgage-related complaints since 2012. One could guess that much of this is due to increased consumer awareness of whom to report grievances to and how to do so. While the data shows a legitimate spike in HECM-related complaints, questions remain such as differentiating between mere questions and complaints that warrant with 80% not requiring any action. Industry trade groups such as the Mortgage Bankers Association, feel this serves only to mislead the consumers the CFPB is charged with protecting.

2- Stupid? A recent CNBC article said reverse mortgages aren’t for the ’stupid’. CNBC reporter Andrew Osterland opens his column saying “you don’t have to be old, poor, and stupid to get a reverse mortgage’. Perhaps Osterland is implying some ‘stupid’ homeowners fell prey to what he says tarnished the industry’s reputation in the first place- ‘cheesy television ads, unscrupulous brokers, and unwise borrower behavior’. He quotes University Professor and industry advocate Dr John Salter who says ‘The late-night ads are a really bad idea for the industry’. Overall the piece is a positive one citing the merits of the HECM when used wisely.

3-Government Shutdown? If there’s one certainty in life it is the political infighting in Washington, D.C., this time it could lead to a government shutdown. By the time you watch this episode, we should know if Republicans and Democrats were able to negotiate a stop-gap budget that President Trump would sign. If there is an extended shut down HECM endorsements would stop altogether, which would lead to a significant backlog. “FHA does not have the authority to insure additional HECMs during this period due to the statutory cap limiting the number of HECMs under the HECM program,” said a guidance piece issued by HUD during the last shutdown in 2013.

4- 2nd Annual Reverse Mortgage Education Week-Last week was Reverse Mortgage education week, during which the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association focuses on educating older adults, financial professionals, real estate agents, and family members about the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage. Topics included tax and insurance defaults, avoiding scams, and the repayment process.

Some See the HECM Financial Assessment As A Benefit

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Two Years Later the Financial Assessment Receives Mixed Reviews

The implementation of the HECM Financial Assessment was met with mixed reviews when it was launched in April 2015. While many industry professionals have remained critical of the new underwriting guidelines some welcome the assessment as see it as a net benefit.

reverse mortgage news‘Every loan is a problem loan’

The seismic shift of the Financial Assessment’s restrictive and complex underwriting guidelines have many feeling that the reverse mortgage underwriting has now matched or surpassed traditional mortgage underwriting guidelines. Bill Smith with Reverse Mortgage west told Reverse Mortgage Daily, “Tighter regulations have resulted in tougher underwriting standards that have made most HECM loans far less routine. Complaints from my colleagues that ‘every loan is a problem loan’ are much too frequent and clearly not what used to be when I started.” Not only is the sales cycle prolonged but the assessment has limited the number of qualified applicants carving out many who would have been previously eligible for the loan.

The Paper Chase

The complexities of the reverse mortgage are difficult enough for many to communicate to a borrower. Now many find themselves spending considerable time gathering the required documentation needed for the assessment which reduces their time spent originating loans…

 

HECM Changes Coming This Fall

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change-pillDespite executive order, more HECM Changes coming this fall

One would think our industry may catch it’s collective breath from the rapid nonstop pace of new rules and regulations for the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage. Such hopes were bolstered with the February announcement of President Trump’s Executive Order curbing federal regulations. However, it appears that HUD’s final rules will in fact be implemented this fall. What do such changes hold in store for the reverse mortgage industry?

Perhaps it is fitting that HUD’s final HECM rule will arrive just days before the fall season officially begins on September 19th. The rollout will come in three phases: self-implementation, changes to the Single Family Housing Policy Handbook, and future mortgagee letters. During the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association meeting last week in New York City, the association’s president and CEO Peter Bell expressed their comfort on the direction of the coming rules changes.

Some additional changes are welcomed by industry participants. These include ….

Lack of Financial Literacy Challenges HECM Acceptance

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Financial illiteracy challenges acceptance of a counter-intuitive mortgagereverse mortgage news

If there is one subject that cries for remedial instruction it’s financial literacy. Fortune.com found that nearly two thirds of Americans are in effect financially illiterate, unable to grasp basic financial concepts. As the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage has become increasingly complex in recent years, the knowledge gap has widened.

Before attempting to explain how a reverse mortgage works, we should perhaps conduct a quick assessment of the prospective borrower’s grasp of financial concepts. After all, who would want to jump from algebra straight to trigonometry? In reality, filling the role of a financial counselor is often impractical, nevertheless we should be mindful of many homeowner’s ability to absorb the information we are presenting.

Consider one question: if you take out a $1,000 loan that has a 20% interest rate, how much will you owe in one year in interest? Nearly two thirds could not answer correctly. The overall rate of American financial literacy findings come from the National Capacity Study by the FINRA Foundation.The very nature of reverse mortgages is counter-intuitive to the mortgages most have known and paid for most of their working years. That familiarity is fraught with myths and misconceptions. Take for example ….

Download the video transcript here.

Big Changes Ahead in 2017

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3 reasons why you should expect big changes in 2017

The political landscape changed with a sudden seismic shift felt across the world. Domestically the impacts of a new populist, small government philosophy may manifest themselves in a variety of ways that will impact reverse mortgage lending this year.

Slashing Domestic Spending:

The Trump administration is contemplating substantial cuts in excess of $6 billion dollars from HUD’s budget, according to documents obtained by the Washington Post. While alarming to some, would such cuts, if realized, substantially impact the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage? The short answer is no as most are speculated to be directed at housing initiatives such as Section 8, community housing projects and assistance programs for elderly low income Americans. Some industry participants however, wonder if continued budget subsidies for the HECM program would place the program in the crosshairs of the federal government’s efforts to reign in domestic spending.

reverse mortgage newsTrump vs. The Fed:

Will Trump regret his comments about the Fed? Throughout his presidential campaign, Donald Trump criticized the Federal Reserve and it’s chair Janet Yellen, of maintaining artificially low interest rates to help Hillary Clinton. In December the Fed raised interest rates on quarter of a percent, the second rate increase since June 2006. Central banks have been reluctant to raise interest rates in the wake of the 2008 financial crash, and home prices have consequently been on a tear. Today, the Fed is projecting three rate hikes this year alone. The impact would be felt by

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Shutting Down: Why many reject the HECM

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The hurdles to increased acceptance are complex

Today there is an estimated $4.4 trillion in home equity for those 65 and older, many who are woefully unprepared for retirement. As HECM endorsements continue to underperform years past, many ask why more eligible homeowners do not get a reverse mortgage.

A recent report from the Urban Institute reveals some of the underlying causes of homeowners reluctance to get a reverse mortgage despite the potential benefits. For years our industry has generally accepted the statistic that a mere 2% of eligible homeowners. However, last summer a MIT study provided a more detailed summary. Analyzing over 3,700 retired households with a loan to value ratios less and 40%, they found 55% would be eligible for a HECM. The bottom line, 12-14% of all retired households in the U.S. are eligible for the reverse mortgage.

The DC think tank, the Urban Institute, published a report entitled ‘Seniors’ Access to Home Equity’, which determined that adults 65 and older control $4.4 trillion of the total $11 trillion held by American homeowners. With nearly half of households in this group having zero retirement savings why are more not seizing the opportunity to fund their retirement years using a reverse mortgage? The primary factors, the report shows, are

Download the video transcript here.