How Can a Reverse Mortgage Help Me?

Reverse mortgages have grown in popularity over the years as more and more seniors discover the benefits. If you are reverse mortgage age and have significant equity in your home, you may be eligible for this life changing loan. Following is a summary of what a reverse mortgage might do for you.

What A Reverse Mortgage Can Do For You

• Stop monthly mortgage payments,
• Pay off medical bills,
• Give you cash monthly,
• Allow you to remain living in your home,
• Consolidate high interest debts,
• Improve your lifestyle,
• Give you a lump sum of cash,
• Allow you to make home repairs,
• Allow you to defer property taxes,
• Provide you with a line of credit for emergencies.
• Buy a home

Compare a Reverse Mortgage to a Traditional Mortgage

As long as you have significant equity in a qualified home and are at least 62, you should find that reverse mortgage loan approval is much easier to get than traditional mortgage loan approval. The reverse mortgage lenders' guidelines are based on your age, the value of the home, and the current reverse mortgage rate. Following is a summary of the ways that a reverse mortgage and traditional mortgage differ.

Income: There is no need to prove income with a reverse mortgage because you do not make monthly mortgage payments. With a traditional mortgage, your debt-to-income ratios shouldn't be higher than 45% max.

Credit History And Scores: A reverse mortgage underwriter does not consider your credit history or scores, except that you cannot have an open bankruptcy. Most traditional mortgage approvals require a clean credit history.

Age: The youngest borrower must be 62 years old or older to be approved for a reverse mortgage. A traditional mortgage only requires the borrowers to be legally able to sign a contract, normally eighteen.

Assets: The home is the asset required for a reverse mortgage loan. The property must be in good shape and of a qualified type (some condos and manufactured homes may not qualify). Traditional mortgage lenders like to see an emergency fund--enough to pay several months' expenses.

Loan Limits: Because there are no monthly mortgage payments and interest accrues until the loan is paid off, reverse mortgage lenders are conservative when setting a maximum reverse mortgage amount. You may be able to get a higher loan amount using a traditional mortgage.

Costs: Traditional loan costs are based on the loan amount. Reverse mortgage fees are based on the home's value, which is why they're higher.

Moving Forward

If you think you may qualify and a reverse mortgage sounds interesting, talk to a reverse mortgage lender in your area and get a reverse mortgage rate quote today. Interest rates are at historic lows, so there has never been a better time to apply. Best Reverse Mortgage has an extensive learning center that will educate you and answers most of your questions. Start today.