Massachusetts Discount Mortgage

What is the Difference?

Posted by Jay McGrath on September 7th, 2008

Most consumers may not know the true difference between a reverse mortgage and a regular mortgage, but in reality there are three major differences between the two.

The three ways are as follows:

To qualify for a regular mortgage, the lender checks your income to see how much you can afford to pay back each month. With a reverse mortgage, however, you don’t have to make monthly repayments. Therefore, your income is not a requirement for a Reverse Mortgage.

With a regular mortgage, you can lose your home if you don’t make your monthly repayments, however, with a reverse mortgage you can’t lose your home by failing to make monthly loan payments because you don’t have any payment to make.

When you qualified for your original purchase, the lender checked you credit to make sure you paid your bills on time, used a credit score, & calculated your percent of debt to your income. However, with a reverse mortgage, we don’t look at your credit score or debt ratios.

A reverse mortgage is worth your consideration if it fits your particular circumstance. A reverse mortgage will allow you to cost-effectively tap into your home’s equity and enhance your retirement income. If you have some bills to pay, want to buy some new carpeting, furniture, need to paint your home, or simply feel like eating out and traveling more, a reverse mortgage may be the perfect solution.

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Age Guidelines for a Reverse Mortgage

Posted by Jay McGrath on September 7th, 2008

There are some restrictions with concern to age and other ownership details in order to receive a reverse mortgage loan.

We know that reverse mortgages are not for everyone, because not everyone qualifies to take out a reverse mortgage. Check out below if you are eligible:

You must own your home. All of the owners must be at least 62 years old or older.

Your home must be your principal residence - which means that you must live in it more than half the year.

For the federally insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgage(HECM), your home must be a single-family property, a 2- to 4-unit building, or a federally approved condominium or planned unit development (PUD). For a Fannie Mae Home Keeper mortgage, you must have a single-family home or condominium.

The value of your home must qualify to satisfy any existing liens.

If you have any debt or lien against your home, it can be paid off at the reverse mortgage settlement.

A reverse home mortgage is a great idea if you do qualify.