Is a Reverse Mortgage right for you?

Over the weekend I attended my little brothers graduation from OSU. Great event and its always fun to get the family together to celebrate and catch up.

While at the family party, my 85 year old grandfather asked me about Reverse Mortgages.

I told him that there is great benefits to seniors, but to be careful because they may not be right for everyone. I came home and decided I should list 10 ways to know if a Reverse Mortgage is right for you.

The following tips can help you understand the ins and outs of reverse mortgages, either for yourself or for an aging parent or relative who could use a financial boost.

10 Tips: How seniors can benefit from a Reverse Mortgage

1. Age matters. For most reverse mortgages, a borrower must be at least 62 and must live in the home as a principal residence. Generally, the older you are and the more valuable your home is, the more money you can tap.

2. Learn how the loans work. Most reverse mortgages require no repayment as long as you live in your home. The loan must be repaid in full, along with interest, when the last living borrower no longer occupies the home as their primary residence.

3. Understand the lender’s role. A lender – typically a bank – will provide you with a loan in an amount ranging from 20 percent to 60 percent of your home’s equity. In exchange, the lender will receive a portion of your home’s value when you die or sell the home.

4. Choose a payment preference. The loan can be paid to you in three ways: as a lump sum, in regular monthly or quarterly installments, or as a line of credit you can tap as needed.

5. Know your responsibilities. Borrowers are responsible for property taxes, insurance and home repairs. Your loan could become due and payable in full if you fail to meet those responsibilities.

6. Get free help. If you are ready to look into a Reverse Mortgage for you situation, know that help is out there. I can give you advice and show you several scenarios. Free of charge. Also know such help is available at little or no cost from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development or a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. Call HUD’s toll-free Housing Counseling and Referral Line at 1-800-569-4287 for details.


7. Assess your status. If you own your home outright or nearly so, a reverse mortgage can help you financially at a point in your life when you may really need it – or at a point when you may really want to take that trip around the world or pursue another lifelong dream. But if you still owe quite a bit of mortgage principal, you’ll usually have to pay that off first. (You can do that via a lump-sum advance on your reverse mortgage, which may or may not make financial sense for you depending on your circumstances.)

8. Assess neighborhood real estate prices. Over time, a reverse mortgage depletes your homes equity. But if you live in an area where home prices have a history of rising, your home’s equity could continue to go up despite your reverse mortgage.

9. Consider your options. A Home Equity Conversion Mortgage is insured by the federal government, and the money you borrow can be used for any purpose. As you investigate loans, clarify exactly what the fees will be. They can vary wildly – from as low as 2 percent of the loan amount to as high as 7 percent. Sometimes to secure a lower fee, you may opt for a higher interest rate, so remember to take that detail into consideration and do the math carefully as you shop around. I will show you a break down of every scenario you qualify for and explain this in detail.

10. Inform yourself. Please feel free to call me anytime for a free brochure or complimentary DVD on the advantages of a Reverse Mortgage. Call toll free to 1-800-921-2636 or in Portland call 503-594-1144.

Introductions are in order...

Hello and welcome to my blog. I am very excited to venture into the world of blogging and sharing useful information, along with my personal insight, with colleagues and clients.

The ever-changing world of the mortgage industry is my general focus as I find myself surrounded by people in the mortgage profession. I am a licensed mortgage consultant, in both Oregon and Washington, but my goal is to focus this site more closely on Retirement Planning, and the great benefits of today's Reverse Mortgage for seniors.

As many seniors are looking forward at their golden years, they start to look for creative ways to make their financing work, because lets face it... its not as easy and inexpensive to just retire at 62, and survive on social security. Seniors want to find a way to live comfortably, which is safe, secure, and has a very low level of risk. This describes virtually every family I have helped that has taken out a reverse mortgage on their home.

I personally get a great satisfaction with every Reverse Mortgage I close. I do enjoy helping a first time homebuyer. There is a great feeling when you see someone experience the excitement of home ownership for the first time. But, there is a different kind satisfaction helping someone at the end of that process. The retired person that is excited to stay in their home, and to be able to eliminate their mortgage and not have the stressful payment looming over them from month to month. Being able to help someone eliminate that monthly payment is a great feeling. Its kind of funny actually... I enjoy helping one person make on their first ever monthly mortgage payment on one hand, and I enjoy helping home owners say goodbye to the monthly mortgage payment entirely on the other hand.

I hope you will visit my site often and I look forward to exploring these great programs and the benefits they have for today’s seniors. I also plan to keep you up to date with current news, and explanations to changes in the mortgage market and how they can affect these programs for today’s seniors!

Thanks for visiting!

Bryan

A Little About Me...

I'm Bryan Husen, Mortgage Consultant with Sunset Mortgage Company. I have been in the mortgage industry for almost 5 years now, and this site is my way to keep in touch with my friends, clients and colleagues.
Let me share a little background on me. I think if you are interested in my blog, my opinions and my ideas, you should know a little more about me.

I am a native Oregonian. I was born in Southern Oregon, (Roseburg) until I was moved to Eastern Oregon (La Grande) in my early years. I spent much of my childhood years in La Grande, until the mid 80's when my family moved again. There was a quick stop to see if my parents like living in Lincoln City, before they decided to move settle down in Portland.

I grew up on the west side of town in the Hillsboro/Beaverton area where I finished High School. After fulfilling a 2-year program with Portland Community College, and putting in some time with PSU, I focused on my career with a construction company. More specifically as a Journeyman Cabinet maker with Alexander’s Manufacturing. What a great opportunity that was. I spent almost 12 years working on many of Las Vegas’ finest casinos and restaurants. One of the highlights of my career with Alexander’s was heading up the installation phase of the One and Only Palmilla in Cabo, Mexico for 3 months. (That was rough livin').

As owners changed for the cabinet shop I was with, and the market had temporarily slowed down, I decided to venture out and try something new. I dove into the world of finance with a national, retail Mortgage Company. This was a great opportunity and set the foundation for what I feel are above industry standards for work ethic, organization, and thoroughness when working in the mortgage.

I left that retail environment after a mere 6 months and became an independent Broker with licensing in both Oregon and Washington. I am with Sunset Mortgage Company, who has been in the Portland area since 1992 with several offices throughout the state and metro area.
I honestly love what I do now. It was an easy transition to trade in my tape measure for a tie. I have always been an honest, easygoing person to work with. That is one thing that you will notice as you get to know me, and you will notice it in the future as you read my posts.

I don’t think I'll ever leave the NW. I love to ski in the wintertime on Mt. Hood, and camp and hike in the summer time. I use my past woodworking skills as a hobby now. I love home improvement, and anything I can tinker with in my wood shop. I personally remodeled a 1972 fiberglass trailer, which I pull everywhere to stay in. (that’s a picture of it above in Canada 3 summers ago). I take my trailer everywhere. From skiing, to camping, hiking and storm watching.
I have 3 siblings. One sister is married and lives on the same street as me. (Family as neighbors has its privileges) I also have a little brother graduating from Oregon State University with a Master in Mathematics this year. My youngest sister is finishing up high school and recently started driving. Look out for her on the road! I have an incredible family. I couldn’t ask for much more.

I hope you come back and read this post often. I have found that I am very satisfied when I work with seniors, either newly retired, or who have been "relaxing" for some time. I enjoy seeing the benifits of a reverse mortgage work with people in there golden years. I hope this blog will have some useful information. I plan on it being a great tool for articles and Reverse Mortage info, delivered with a friendly casual approach.

Contact Information for Bryan Husen of Sunset Mortgage

Bryan Husen - Mortgage Consultant

Sunset Mortgage

10365 SE Sunnyside Road, Suite 340

Clackamas, OR 97015

Office: 503-594-1131

Cell: 503-849-7782

Fax: 503-594-1122

Toll Free: 1-800-921-2636

WA License # 510-LO-36567

Email: bhusen@sunsetmortgageco.com