If you are reading this article, you are one of the winners. Pat yourself on the back. Even I these turbulent times, you are taking steps to not only survive, but thrive. Why not supplement your business with the fastest growing product ever to hit the mortgage industry, the reverse mortgage. Get ready the time is now.
A Starving Crowd
Why is the reverse mortgage growing in popularity so quickly right now? One reason - seniors need your help and they need it now. Foreclosure is up among seniors. Bankruptcy is up among seniors. They are seeing their investments dwindle right before their eyes. Unlike the rest of us, seniors may not have years to wait for the market to recover. They depend on those funds now. Expenses like medication and energy are on the rise. Real estate taxes, home maintenance, the list goes on and on. I'm not a gloom and doom type of person. I like to look at the upside of any situation.
But this situation is not some media hype- it's for real. And the target market for this product is growing, literally by leaps and bounds. The baby boomers, all 78 million of them, are streaking toward retirement. Think you can't originate this loan? Think you aren't ready yet (maybe I'll specialize in this next year)? Don't let this tsunami pass you by.
Not sure where to find the seniors? Look around they are everywhere. Big cities, small towns, rural areas, seniors are all over. Are you new to the business? What better way to get up and running right away than with this product that is so in demand! Reverse mortgage volume has grown each year over the last several, even in a time where overall mortgage volume is down in many areas. How many programs can you name that experienced growth in 2008? With the recent increase in the Federal Housing Administration Home Equity Conversion Mortgage lending limit to $625,500 for the remainder of 2009, the time is now. If you are active in the reverse business already, you should go back and look at your prospect database. Was there someone you could not help in 2008 because the numbers just didn't work? There are probably deals just waiting for you.
The Obvious Solution
What makes the reverse mortgage the right choice for so many seniors? That's a no-brainer. Where else can you get a loan that has no income, credit, asset (other than the house) or health criteria? A loan whose qualification rest on the age of the borrower and the value of the home? Where no payments are due as long as the senior resides in the home? A line of credit that cannot be frozen (have you heard of that recently?)? And it's FHA backed and includes a non-recourse clause so the senior and their heirs cannot be saddled with a debt once the home is sold. The house stands for the loan, plain and simple. Combine the fact that so many of our seniors are struggling and that the reverse mortgage is so easy to do, you do have an unprecedented opportunity right in front of you. The stars are aligned. Take the hint.
Sue Haviland is a reverse mortgage consultant in Baltimore, and the founder of Reverse Mortgage Success, a leader in the training and education for originators around the country in the rapidly growing reverse mortgage arena. She has worked in the lending industry since 1981. She has been originating reverse mortgages for the last six years and still originates loans every day. Sign up for her free seven-part mini-course at
