Talk with Your Kids about Reverse Mortgages

Peter Miller recently wrote about whether or not adult children resent their parents getting reverse mortgages. Some adult kids resent losing out on any inheritance they may feel entitled to, according to the article. But it’s unlikely that most seniors who decide to borrow a reverse home mortgage are doing it to “stick it” to their heirs. Many of these people probably feel they have no choice but to tap home equity to supplement their retirement income.

Reverse Mortgages Have Pros and Cons

If you think a reverse loan may cause some tension with your kids, it may be a good idea to discuss the pros and cons with them early on in the application process. They may have some very legitimate reasons for not wanting you to get a reverse mortgage. While it’s ultimately your choice to borrow with a reverse mortgage, bringing them into the dialogue may help reassure them about supporting your choice.

Reverse Mortgage Counseling

You can choose to include reverse mortgage heirs in your mandatory counseling session. This step can help everyone gain an understanding of reverse mortgage guidelines. There are a lot of myths about reverse loans and your kids may be concerned about some of them without having all the facts. Likewise, you may be misinformed about just how much a reverse mortgage can change your financial situation. Go into the counseling session with an open mind so that you can really determine whether borrowing with a reverse loan makes sense.

Whether or not your kids fully embrace your choice to apply for a reverse mortgage, they may have to deal with it after you die. If you plan to leave your home to your kids, make sure they understand what their responsibilities are going to be when settling your estate. The reverse loan counselor can go through this information with you.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 at 4:43 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.