FHA Reverse Mortgage: Rumors Of Its Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

Well, well, well – one thing certainly can be said of those of us living in the Washington, DC area: we read our news.

Yesterday, MetLife unexpectedly announced it was exiting the Reverse Mortgage field, catching even its own employees off guard. Met had already sold its bank and closed its home mortgage division months earlier.

Within 10 minutes of the announcement my phone began to ring. And ring…and RING. Colleagues, clients, and co-workers wanted to know if Met’s exit meant my employer, Middleburg Bank, was going to be negatively impacted.

So what does this mean for you, for your clients, and for those of us privileged enough to live here in the greater Baltimore-Washington corridor?

NOTHING. It means nothing.

And WHY? Because the FHA HECM only works when there is equity in the home sufficient to extinguish “forward” loans on the property. Put a home in Tucson or Tulsa, Denver, or Dubuque and chances are the HECM just isn’t going to work.

Put that same home in Bethesda or Brandywine, Arlington or Alexandria, Middleburg or Marshall, and it’s a different story altogether.

The Blessed Are…Well, Blessed: Using Home Equity to Supplement Retirement Income

There are no two ways about it: we here in the shadow of D.C.are blessed in many ways. History books are filled with reasons why those with options have more options still, and those with few options have still fewer.

As one nationwide lender after another exits the HECM market, the product becomes a regional offering. And it makes sense: why would a national lender maintain a workforce of hundreds – or thousands – if the product only works in a handful of regions across the country. We have always had good options – and now we still have good options.

I am grateful to live in a region in which our senior clients, adult children caring for parents, and our family and friends still have available to them the FHA HECM as a planning tool to see them safely through retirement.

Give me a call with any questions or concerns you may have. I am always delighted to hear from you. And, as always, I am privileged to work with you to find solutions to the financial needs of the seniors in your life.

Laurie

Laurie MacNaughton [NMLS# 506562]
Reverse Mortgage Consultant
Middleburg Mortgage
20937 Ashburn Road, Ste 115
Ashburn, Virginia 20147
703-477-1183 Direct
703-995-4870 Fax
LMacNaughton@MiddleburgBank.com
www.MiddleburgMortgage.com/LaurieM