The absence of monthly mortgage payments should free up more spendable cash for you each month. If you don’t have an existing mortgage that first needs to be paid off, you should have even more cash, which you can choose to receive via a variety of disbursement plans, including a line of credit as a buffer against financial emergencies.

Many reverse mortgage borrowers use a reverse mortgage line of credit as a sort of long-term care health insurance policy. Any portion of the line that you don’t touch will continue to increase, giving you a growing, go-to source of funds to help you pay for medical emergencies or your long-term care needs.

Replacing high-interest debt with lower-interest debt is simply smart money management, especially if you’ve been carrying a balance forward each month, incurring double-digit interest rates.

To be eligible for a HUD reverse mortgage, HUD’s Federal Housing Administration (FHA) requires that the borrower is a homeowner, 62 years of age or older; own your home outright, or have a low mortgage balance that can be paid off at the closing with proceeds from the reverse loan; and must live in the home. You are further required to receive consumer information from HUD-approved counseling sources prior to ob- taining the loan.

Yes. It doesn’t matter if you didn’t buy it with an FHA-insured mortgage. Your new HUD reverse mortgage will be a new FHA-insured mortgage loan.

Your home must be a single family dwelling or a two-to-four unit property that you own and occupy. Town- houses, detached homes, units in condominiums and some manufactured homes are eligible. Condominiums must be FHA-approved.

No, you cannot lose your home for living longer than expected.

Although there is no minimum required credit score, we review your credit to determine your ability to meet financial obligations such as property taxes, homeowners insurance, and home maintenance costs.