For retirees today, stretching savings to last throughout retirement is tougher today than ever before as Americans are living longer and market volatility hinders returns on investments. And while there are various strategies retirees can take to make their money last, a new retirement advice book suggests reverse mortgages shouldn’t be overlooked.
A retiree’s home can hold the key to a substantial source of wealth, which can be unlocked through the use of a reverse mortgage. But reverse mortgages, have long been controversial products in the eyes of financial advisers in the past, have undergone some serious program changes over the last several years and the financial planning community, as well as others in the business of offering financial advice, has taken notice.
Personal finance commentator Jane Bryant Quinn used to think reverse mortgages entailed more risk than reward, but she has since changed her mind.
In her new book “How to Make Your Money Last” (Simon and Schuster), an overview of which recently appeared in a Chicago Tribune article this week, Quinn acknowledges that the recent changes to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program have diminished the perceived risk and that “new cash-flow strategies make [reverse mortgages] interesting for people in their early 60s and 70s.”
One of the nation’s leading personal finance commentators, Quinn’s columns regularly appear in publications like CBS MoneyWatch.com and AARP.
Apart from reverse mortgages, “How to Make Your Money Last” discusses other retirement topics, including shopping for health and long-term care insurance, annuities, retirement spending and different approaches to invest for income through structuring a well-balanced portfolio.
Written by Jason Oliva
