Reverse mortgages

The company is launching a training course to certify its loan officers on HECM loans.

The change may decrease the amount of time that a servicer is required to hold a loan on their balance sheet.

The company sold off several segments of its business last year and also completed four securitizations of reverse mortgage loans as it fully commits to the 'retirement home-equity market.'

Interest rate increases and economic concerns led the government entity to lower the required amount from $1 million to $250,000.

While reverse mortgages allow older homeowners the opportunity to draw on home equity with minimal risk, problems arising from flaws in program structure are causing headaches for borrowers and issuers alike, according to recent reports.

This move comes at a time when the largest HECM producer sold its operations to a rival and another filed for bankruptcy.

After volumes peaked at their highest in over a decade in March, the reverse mortgage market ended the year with a bankruptcy and merger involving its largest companies.

The Lansing, Michigan-based firm was awarded the contract this spring and takes over from Novad Management Consulting, which had previously serviced government-held HECMs since 2014.

The deal will close for $10 million in cash, plus the right to purchase nearly 33.9 million shares of common stock.

The year-end expiration date on two temporary measures designed to help older borrowers were pushed to December 2023.