The drone continues. Parade Magazine this week is the latest to publish a grossly misinformed piece about reverse mortgages.  Before that we suffered a ton of stories in the national and regional press referencing “reverse mortgages – the next big subprime mess”.

Several weeks ago Consumer Reports hit the stands with an inflamatory and irresponsible piece about reverse mortgages.  Many of these stories were generated from comments made by the Comptroller of the Currency, self-serving hearings held by Sen Claire McCaskill (D- MO) and have been fueled more recently by a National Consumer Law Center study published in October. (I’m suspicious of “studies” when I note that some report contributors listed under “Acknowledgements” have made a public career out of bad-mouthing reverse mortgages.)

Yet AARP reports that 93% of seniors who completed a reverse mortgage are reasonably happy. This proves that only bad news sells newspapers and magazines.  Good news is a waste of time for these organizations.  Where are the stories about the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of seniors who have been helped by reverse mortgages?

We encourage you to read these articles and studies. But be forewarned. This doom and gloom is old news.  Sure, there have been seniors who have been victims of dishonest lenders and brokers.  But there have also been borrowers who have learned to game the system… claiming they didn’t know this or that.  These cases are the exception, not the rule!  New regulations from HUD are already in place and make the scenarios of several years ago described in these articles and reports very unlikely if not impossible today.

Decide for yourself!  Read the “bad news”.  If you’re a reasonably intelligent person who has made it to senior status and has retained ownership of a home, raised a family, and tried to prepare financially for retirement… you know how to pick the right professional(s) to help you determine if a reverse mortgage is good or bad for you.  Don’t let yourself be bullied by pushy “salesmen”. And certainly don’t let yourself be bullied by fear-mongering reporters or pseudo-experts with an agenda from the “think tanks”.  And a final piece of advice for Consumer Reports – stick to toasters and washing machines!

Consumer Reports article here

Parade Magazine article here

National Consumer Law Center study here

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Author – Robert H. Irving, CSA®
Senior Reverse Mortgage Consultant