Choose the Right Reverse Mortgage Lender

There are a lot of companies out there advertising reverse mortgages, and it’s not always easy to know which one to choose. Just make sure that the reverse mortgage lender you choose to work with is on the up and up. Use this checklist to vet reverse mortgage lenders.

1. Find a qualified reverse mortgage counselor to discuss your options. You can get referrals for reverse loan counselors from the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, Money Management International, or the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Counseling can give you the information you need to shop around for the right loan.
2. Check out mortgage lenders’ credentials. Reverse mortgage lenders need to be licensed in many states. You can check with your state banking commissioner or Attorney General’s office to find out about specific requirements for your state.
3. Be on guard for reverse loan scams. Fraud involving reverse mortgages includes stealing equity from homeowners and finding straw buyers to pose as homeowners in flipping scams. Another scheme involves getting seniors to sign over the title to their home to someone who claims they can help them keep the property. What usually happens is the fraudster gets away with the title and all the equity in the home. In some cases, reverse mortgage fraud is perpetrated by dishonest mortgage loan officers and other real estate professionals.
4. Compare quotes from several reverse mortgage lenders. This allows you to find the best terms and conditions, including interest rates, fees, and other closing costs.

Have lenders run the numbers on different scenarios that factor in your age and home value. For instance, find out how much money you can get at your current age, compared with how much you could qualify for in another five years or so. This can help determine if it makes sense to wait a few years to apply for a reverse home mortgage.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 30th, 2009 at 1:58 pm and is filed under Reverse Mortgage . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.