Reverse Mortgage Helps Seniors Make Ends Meet
With real estate prices escalating, owning a home may be your best investment.
But for senior citizens on a fixed income, having a home won't help pay the bills. Unless they take out a reverse mortgage.
Mike and Helen Maeda have been enjoying the view from their Kukui Plaza lanai for nearly 30 years. But during that time their condo has deteriorated. Now retired on a fixed income, the Maedas couldn't afford needed renovations.
Their solution? A reverse mortgage. It's the opposite of a traditional mortgage because instead of paying the lender each month, the lender pays the Maedas. They took out their loan in January and the work is already underway.
The Maedas will never owe more than the value of their home. And the money will keep coming as long as Helen or Mike Maeda continue to live here.
"As long as one of us is here," says Mike. "Until somebody calls us from up or down."
If you're at least 62 years old and own your home you probably qualify for a reverse mortgage. The amount of the loan depends on your age and the value of your home. The lender should be experienced in reverse mortgages.
"There is further education needed besides just the mortgage and the loans," explains the Maeda's loan officer Nelson Oyadomari. "You have to understand senior-related issues - Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, all of these things."
The downside to a reverse mortgage? After the homeowner moves, sells or dies, the loan has to be paid off, plus interest.
"What goes to their heirs you know, there's a little less equity than the children might have anticipated," says Oyadomari. "But most children we found want their parents to enjoy and not have to struggle."
"I wanted to have my wife secured after I go," says Mike Maeda. "She doesn't have any retirement income only social security and that's not enough."
Helen Maeda counters, "He's older but I think he's going to outlive me. He's so healthy."
No matter how long the Maedas live, they'll have a place to live and monthly income that makes them feel more secure.
Source: KGMB9 (Colette P. Fox)
Visit now for your free reverse mortgage analysis
|
|
