In case you missed it, here’s what happened in reverse mortgage news this week:
HUD Sets New Reverse Mortgage Financial Assessment Date—Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) must comply with Financial Assessment guidelines for case numbers issued on or after April 27, 2015, the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced this week. HUD earlier this month said it would push back the planned March 2 implementation, giving lenders some extra time to prepare.
Urban Sweetens HomeSafe Jumbo Reverse Mortgage With New Changes—Its proprietary reverse mortgage product, HomeSafe, now will be offered with an improved loan-to-value ratio, Urban Financial of America has announced. The loan also will now be available in Illinois.
CFPB Report Gains Attention from Media, Reverse Lenders—The media seized on a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report about reverse mortgage complaints, but many news stories glossed over the fact that only about 1% of all mortgage complaints received by the agency were related to reverse mortgages, industry members say.
Forbes: Funding Retirement With a Reverse Mortgage—Despite potential drawbacks, reverse mortgages offer an appealing way for seniors with little retirement savings to pay for everyday living expenses, Forbes writer Nick Clements writes.
White House Spells New Rules for All Retirement Advisors—The Department of Labor is preparing to publish a rule tightening standards for retirement advisers, the White House announced. The goal is to protect consumers from self-serving advisers who stand to make money through fees and back-door payments.
Written by Tim Mullaney