Reverse mortgage loans are widely misunderstood, and many homeowners and advisors have a strong negative bias against them. Unfortunately, those misconceptions and preconceptions hold back many ideal candidates from ever considering a reverse mortgage.

Today’s reverse mortgage loans are not the same as they were even a decade ago, and it is to your advantage as a trusted financial professional to take a fresh look at them, as they can often be a viable solution to many of the financial challenges that retirees face.

The aim of this piece is to help you understand both common, and somewhat less common, questions about reverse mortgages. Armed with the facts, you will have a much clearer picture of whether a reverse mortgage might be right for older-adult homeowners you advise.

Note: Most, but not all, reverse mortgages today are a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), the only reverse mortgage insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). This article refers only to the HECM reverse mortgage.

Today’s reverse mortgage loans have built-in protections designed to make sure the loan is a sustainable solution for the borrower. In this article, we’ll explore what a life expectancy set-aside (LESA) is, how it helps a borrower to pay property charges, when the lender’s underwriter will require it, and why, in some situations, it may be advantageous for a reverse mortgage borrower to voluntarily opt for a LESA.

NAIFA is proud to share that long-time partner and champion Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation was named #1 in the 2022 Top Workplaces USA, in an award issued by Energage. Fairway also took the top spot in 2021 as the top-ranked winner for a company with over 2,500 employees.

NAIFA congratulates our corporate partner OneAmerica on its new multi-year sponsorship deal with USA Swimming, the national governing body of the sport of swimming in the United States. OneAmerica is the first Centennial Partner heading into the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for swimming, which will be held in Indianapolis.