Monday 23rd December
Home » Archives
More Consumers Confused by Role of CFPB than Reverse Mortgage Ads
Written on 17 Jun, 2015 at 13:08
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently conducted a focus group at which they showed reverse mortgage ads, concluding the ads are misleading... but, so what? ... (Continue reading)
How & Why I Fell in Love with the Reverse Mortgage
Written on 21 Feb, 2015 at 0:05
Nothing else does what a reverse mortgage does. There's no real alternative because any other type of home equity loan would require you to make monthly payments, and you can't retire with high monthly payments or you could end up... (Continue reading)
Motley Fool’s 10 Reasons Not to Get Reverse Mortgage is So Wrong… but Some Right
Written on 17 Feb, 2015 at 16:23
Yet another example of shoddy reporting on reverse mortgages. Some of what Bennett writes is correct, but much of it is slanted and the rest is just plain wrong.... (Continue reading)
REALITY CHECK: “Reverse Mortgage Realities” According to The New York Times
Written on 29 Nov, 2014 at 8:46
The latest example of bad information on reverse mortgages is by Lisa Prevost, The New York Times, who promises to present "realities of reverse mortgages." And then doesn't.... (Continue reading)
Love Them or Loathe Them? It helps to understand them. Ron Lieber on Reverse Mortgages.
Written on 20 Nov, 2014 at 19:47
Ron Lieber has had years to learn about reverse mortgages, so unless we're dealing with some sort of learning disability here there's no excuse for him writing this kind of article.... (Continue reading)
How and Why Congress Changed the Reverse Mortgage in 2008
Written on 7 Nov, 2014 at 5:13
Congress recognized the important role that reverse mortgages play so in HERA they offered greater protections and increased utility to homeowners.... (Continue reading)
Views on Reverse Mortgages from Around the World
Written on 1 Nov, 2014 at 18:15
It’s utterly amazing how this country has managed to adopt such a warped view of reverse mortgages. Somehow, we’ve managed to take a government insured mortgage that doesn’t require monthly payments and turn it into a bad thing. It... (Continue reading)
LATE START STRATEGY: Creating retirement income to last a lifetime… even if you haven’t saved a nickel.
Written on 28 Oct, 2014 at 17:44
Is it even possible to be financially prepared for thirty years of living without getting a paycheck from work? The answer is simple: INCOME. And even without savings it can be done.... (Continue reading)
Future SHOCK for Older Homeowners: You Won’t Get a HELOC, a Second, or Refi based on your Equity
Written on 15 Oct, 2014 at 23:54
If you're over 62, you have to ask yourself what you'd do in the event your income dropped or your expenses rose unexpectedly? You could tap your savings, but that's not something you want to do because spending your nest... (Continue reading)
Dear Bloomberg & Financial Advisors: They can’t get a HELOC & don’t want to sell their homes.
Written on 8 Oct, 2014 at 2:38
Okay, Ben you blew it on reverse mortgages, but I feel certain that you'll try very hard not to let it happen again. It's important, because if you get it wrong, you might end up writing something that ends... (Continue reading)
Percentage Over 65 Still Paying a Mortgage Doubles to 40%
Written on 2 Oct, 2014 at 6:28
According to a new report from Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, as of 2010, “40 percent of households 65 and up were still paying a mortgage.” In 1992, according to the report, there were only about 18 percent over... (Continue reading)
Downsizing and Downgrading… Requirements for Retirement
Written on 28 Sep, 2014 at 13:38
More and more Americans are finding retirement more of an impossible dream than an American one. Baby boomers are delaying retirement or working through it, and most are woefully short of the amounts they'd need to retire. But... (Continue reading)
Understanding The Black Swan… Thy Name is Retirement
Written on 26 Sep, 2014 at 8:44
Reverse mortgages can help us deal with the Black Swan event we're most familiar with today... the meltdown in home prices that began in 2007 and left tens of millions of American homeowners "underwater," or in other words, owing more... (Continue reading)
Why Can’t Dave Ramsey Get his Facts Straight on Reverse Mortgages?
Written on 13 Sep, 2014 at 1:24
Reverse mortgages are an extremely important financial tool for millions of Americans... and more and more every day. When Dave Ramsey writes about them, he needs to be accurate... and he's not. And that's a problem. ... (Continue reading)
How & Why to Retire South of the Border (at least Part-Time)
Written on 5 Sep, 2014 at 17:02
If you've been reading what I've been writing about reverse mortgages over this past year, it should be becoming clear that they are incredibly flexible and can be used for many purposes... from protecting a home from foreclosure in the... (Continue reading)
IF YOU’RE 62+ AND STILL PAYING A MORTGAGE… Here are 7 Reasons You Can End Up in Foreclosure and How to Protect Your Home Now
Written on 26 Aug, 2014 at 18:22
Now, I'm not saying that anyone should have known about any of this. The fact is that his article, and others I've written in the recent past, appear to be the first in the country to propose switching to... (Continue reading)
Why the Media Misinforming Seniors on Reverse Mortgages is Wrong and Even Dangerous
Written on 14 Aug, 2014 at 8:28
And reverse mortgages keep homes safe from foreclosure, and millions of seniors have lost homes from foreclosure over the last five years. Many were denied loan modifications because they had equity in their homes. I can't help but... (Continue reading)
Who Doesn’t Need a Back-Up Plan for a Secure Retirement?
Written on 7 Jan, 2014 at 14:55
Maybe the wealthiest retirees can get by without taking out a reverse mortgage as a way to protect their financial futures, but for the rest of us... not having funds from a reverse mortgage available is what's risky. And... (Continue reading)
We’re Looking at a Retirement Crisis, Because We’re Gambling Unnecessarily
Written on 18 Nov, 2013 at 17:46
It's like we're "Risk Junkies." What could be riskier than betting on the stock market going up and future tax rates staying the same or going down? Are we nuts? The answer is... we've been lied to. ... (Continue reading)
Estate Planning Experts Make a To-Do List for the Complete Estate Plan ““ A Mandelman Matters Podcast
Written on 8 Nov, 2013 at 19:30
Survey after survey has shown that at least half of American adults will pass away without a will. In 2007, a study conducted by Harris Interactive®for Martindale-Hubbell® found that, looking back three years, 55% of all adult Americans did... (Continue reading)
Interview with Renee Gabbard, Esq: Retirement is harder for WOMEN than MEN
Written on 10 Sep, 2013 at 18:40
On this 30 minute podcast, we will say the things that need to be said, candidly discussing the retirement and estate planning issues that are unique to women... and that if ignored for too long, can cause women to endure... (Continue reading)
SAFE MONEY INVESTING: An Interview with Mike Moorhead of Tippett Moorhead
Written on 8 Jul, 2013 at 13:31
why aren't we all saving more? We know we're not getting younger. Why aren't we all doing more to put money away to ensure a more secure financial future? Maybe not a lot more... but why not... (Continue reading)
What Happened On Wall Street and Why
Written on 18 Jul, 2009 at 15:27
But until homeowners are able to refinance their adjustable and recasting mortgages into affordable loans, and foreclosures abate as a result, we'll see no recovery. As they say, this too will pass... but not tomorrow, not next year, and not... (Continue reading)
Confidence Lost
Written on 18 Jul, 2009 at 13:41
Even if we can't agree on what to call it, can we agree on the cause of our latest national catastrophe? With every single economist, policy expert, and regulatory official apparently working on the problem, surely we've gotten to the... (Continue reading)
How Many Light Bulbs Does It Take To Change An Investor?
Written on 18 Jul, 2009 at 12:34
People ignored anyone suggesting that yet another bubble was in the making. The fact that housing prices had fallen after previous booms, such as in 1990, didn't seem to matter. "This time is different", was the order of the day.... (Continue reading)