As we all know, staying mentally active has been shown to help our cognitive skills. Many seniors keep their minds engaged through working at a job, but good jobs have become increasingly scarce in our current economy. There is good news on the job front for senior females. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics expects...Read More
According to Fannie Mae’s most recent national housing survey of 1,000 respondents, confidence in America’s housing market continues its upward climb. Perhaps most telling: 23% of respondents feel this is a good time to sell a house. That’s the first time that number has risen above 20% since Fannie Mae started measuring that particular item....Read More
In the past, seniors viewed reverse mortgages as a last-option choice. Now that seniors are getting to know the program better, the reasons they are choosing to get reverse mortgages are changing. Here are the top five objectives for Alabama reverse mortgage borrowers: Improvement of Quality of Life. As children it seems that life is...Read More
In a recent issue of Forbes, writer Mark Greene illustrates in enlightening fashion the realities of getting approved for a mortgage loan in 2012. It’s one of the clearest explanations we’ve seen about why the process of getting a loan approved these days is harder than ever. It’s not because banks are simply trying to...Read More
We all know the effects that a sedentary lifestyle has on our bodies: increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, etc. Recent studies are also showing that inactive lifestyles are leading to increased rates of Alzheimer’s. Other factors include obesity (more common among the couch-potato group) and smoking. There also seems to be a symbiotic relationship...Read More
New guidelines have lowered the fees on many of these federal loans. The changes drop the cost of refinancing for millions of homeowners. Not all mortgages are eligible, but if yours is, the savings could be substantial. To read more about the new program, click here. If you think your loan fits the bill, or...Read More
There have been some very beneficial developments in the reverse mortgage industry in the last 18 months or so. In late 2010, the “Saver” program was introduced. The Saver is so named due to eliminating, or “saving”, the borrower the upfront Mortgage Insurance Premium (MIP) fee paid to FHA. The MIP is the largest component...Read More
It’s one of the most common questions we get about loans. The answer is simple, but it’s not always easy to grasp. Essentially, APR is the effective rate of interest once you’ve added to the loan amount certain closing costs. So while the interest rate “is what it is,” APR is variable based on the...Read More
Anyone who works closely with reverse mortgage borrowers will realize how indispensable Social Security and Medicare are to this group. Since 1975 when Congress added Cost of Living Adjustments to Social Security benefits, these “COLA” increases have averaged 4.2% annually. Up until 2010, there were increases every year. During the difficult economic time from 1979...Read More
If the national mood is any indication, 2012 should be a better year for the housing market. That’s according to a new survey by Fannie Mae, conducted during the first three weeks of December. While in November, respondents said they expected their homes’ values to increase by only .2 percent, in December they predicted .8...Read More
