In the interest of best serving the needs of the borrower and protecting ourselves against future legal claims, each of us should reexamine the questions should be asking each potential borrower…
Continue readingCFPB Releases New Consumer Reverse Mortgage Guide
It was only two short years ago that the CFPB or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued it’s first report to congress on the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage or reverse mortgage program. In this week’s segment we will examine what questions this guide addresses as well as the questions it raises…
Continue readingBack to Basics
If you look at the federally insured reverse mortgage one could say we have come full circle coming closer to the program’s original intent. What intent?
Continue readingToo Much Too Soon?
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Reexamining Product Design and Use of Proceeds
The recent overhaul of the HECM program was a watershed event for both the reverse mortgage industry and senior homeowners. The elimination of the Standard Fixed Rate, consolidation to one product, two-tiered upfront FHA premiums and first year distribution restrictions all were born from FHA’s attempt to reign in the HECM program back to its original intent while reducing the risk of defaults and payouts from the MMI fund. The idea was to prevent borowers from using all of their proceeds in the first or early years of the loan which could leave them with little or no financial options once they’ve exhausted all their funds. Also, lower upfront withdrawals and deferred or tenure payments or a line of credit reduce the likelihood that the loan balance would exceed the home’s value in the early years of the loan or when the loan ultimately terminated. Most program changes were spurred by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s report to Congress…
Not Confused But Informed
Would a senior make perhaps the biggest financial decision of their life, with their largest asset in the midst of confusion and uncertainty and choose to take a reverse mortgage? Most likely not. But that was the impression the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau included in their required report to…
Continue readingConsumers Union to CFPB: Only as a “Last Resort”
Two consumer groups are urging the CFPB to make drastic changes to the revere mortgage program. Chief among them is a suitability standard and fiduciary duty. In the words of the Consumers Union they recommend that a reverse mortgage be a loan of last resort when there is no other viable option and…
Continue readingRequired Pre-Education?
Require Pre-Education Before Counseling? One groups suggested to the CFPB that a ‘third party’ provide upfront education about the reverse mortgage BEFORE the borrower get’s HUD counseling or meets with a lender. Who would these ‘third parties’ be and who would supervise them?
Continue readingOriginal Intent & Present Reality
One key assertion in the report was that borrowers today are using the reverse mortgage in way that differs from it’s original intent. That original intent according to the report was “to enable older borrowers to convert home equity into cash…
Continue readingCFPB to Congress on Reverse Mortgage Industry
What some feared would be highly critical actually was balanced giving a historical perspective. The CFPB’s report to Congress on the Reverse Mortgage Industry. Highly detailed and filled with demographic and market trends, the report…
Continue readingCFPB Audit: What to expect
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has begun it’s audits of non-banking lenders. What can we expect to see? How will reverse mortgage lenders respond?
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