Robert E. Jones asked:


1. Am I eligible for a Reverse Mortgage?

• To qualify for a reverse mortgage, you must:

• Be at least 62 years old. In the case of a couple or co-owners, both must be 62 if they want their names to be on title of the home.

• Be a homeowner with enough equity in the home.

• Seniors may qualify even if they have an outstanding balance on a mortgage.

• Single-family homes and qualified condominiums, townhouses, manufactured homes, and 2 to 4-family owner occupied residences are eligible.

• Reverse mortgages are available only for homes occupied by owners as a principal residence.

• Can own up to 4 dwellings.

2. Are Reverse Mortgages legitimate?

Yes. Reverse Mortgages are federally regulated and insured and are safer than most traditional mortgages.

3. If I get a Reverse Mortgage that means the government holds title to my home?

False. Title does not get transferred into the governments name. Throughout the life of the loan, you own your home.

4. If I decide to sell my home, will the lender make me pay back the loan and will they collect a portion of the appreciation?

False. The lender will only collect the amount that is due to them. If the loan balance is larger than the home value, the lender will only collect the proceeds from the sale. You can never owe more than what your home is worth.

5. What do I have to pay to get a Reverse Mortgage?

In most cases there are no out of pocket costs to get a Reverse Mortgage. All costs deferred and only due when the homeowner moves out permanently, sells the home or passes away.

6. What are my payment options?

You decide how to receive the money generated by a Reverse Mortgage. In general, your payment options are:

• An upfront lump sum payment.

• Line of credit.

• Fixed monthly payments for as long as you remain in your home (or a predetermined, shorter period).

• A combination of lump sum, monthly income and line of credit.

7. Are Reverse Mortgages only for desperate seniors, or for the “House Rich, Cash Poor?”

False. The Reverse Mortgage is an excellent financial planning tool that has been used by homeowners from all walks of life to enhance their retirement years. While some have needed the cash from a reverse mortgage more than others, the growing popularity of this product is evidence of its benefit in a wide array of financial circumstances.

8. Am I required to pay anything during the course of the Reverse Mortgage loan?

No. The flow of payments is reversed during the term of the Reverse Mortgage – the lending institution pays you. However, you are responsible for keeping up payments for your homeowner’s insurance and property taxes, and to maintain the condition of your home.

9. What happens when my house gets passed to my heirs?

Once your home is passed to your heirs, the Reverse Mortgage comes due. Your heirs may either pay the balance due on the reverse mortgage and keep the home, or sell the home and use the proceeds to pay off the reverse mortgage. If they sell the home, they get to keep any excess sale proceeds.

10. Can I do a Reverse Mortgage if there already is a conventional mortgage on the home?

Yes. Existing mortgages must be paid off at closing. The proceeds from the Reverse Mortgage may be used for that purpose. This will eliminate any monthly mortgage payments.

11. Can a Reverse Mortgage be closed in a living trust?

Yes. Generally this is acceptable. The complete trust documents will need to be copied and put in as part of the file.

12. Will a Reverse Mortgage affect my Social Security, Medicare or pension benefits?

No. Proceeds from a Reverse Mortgage do not affect these benefits.

13. Can I get a Reverse Mortgage from anyone?

No. Only federally approved lenders may offer HUD insured reverse mortgages. Rob Jones will close your Reverse Mortgages up to three times faster than the competition. Why not use a pioneer in the reverse mortgage profession, Sun American has over 20 years of Reverse Mortgage experience.

14. How do I get started?

Call Rob Jones at Sun American Mortgage. He will need your birth date, approximate value of your home and the amount of money remaining on your mortgage, if any.

The House Team Of Mortgage Intellingence asked:


“Lower than prime,” you heard someone say. Like most Canadians, you were probably first skeptical and then confused. We tend to think of the prime lending rate as the invisible “floor” of lending rates. The very best customers can get very close to that floor. It is theoretically possible, we reason, to actually be ON the floor, but not possible to be below it.

Nevertheless, Canadian lenders offer mortgages at prime minus 0.5% to even minus 0.7%. So the floor isn’t the lowest you can go. There’s something under the “floor”. The rate known as “prime” has been the popular benchmark for lending in Canada. When business reporters talk about interest rate movement, they usually talk about what’s happening with prime. But there are other benchmarks in money rates, though they are typically for use by professional money managers. The most significant of these is the Banker’s Acceptance rate.

While “prime” is a set rate which is offered to a lender’s best customers, the Banker’s Acceptance is the rate which financial institutions use to lend money to one another. And it’s typically well below the prime rate. Look for the “Money Rates”section of your favourite newspaper, and you can compare Prime with the Banker’s

Acceptance rates for yourself. “Interesting,” you think, “but why does it matter?” Well, as new lending institutions begin to offer a slate of innovative new loan options, a new mortgage has emerged that is based on the Banker’s Acceptance rate: offering a mortgage rate of 1% over the 3-month Banker’s Acceptance.

If you compared the rock-bottom prime-based variable mortgage rate – prime less 0.5% to 0.7% – with the new adjustable BA-based rate, you would find that the BA-based rate would have delivered significant savings over the past several years, as rates were dropping. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the BA-based rates have historically been considerably lower than prime. Secondly, the prime rate tends to be “stickier” in an environment where rates are falling. Often, the more fluid, market-based BA rates deliver the rate change more quickly.

Any variable- or adjustable-rate Ontario mortgage is an excellent option when interest rates are either dropping or stable. Not surprisingly, they’ve been a very popular choice in the past few years. There are some rumblings now that rates may begin to increase, but flexible-rate mortgages still remain an excellent choice for those looking to save some interest.

As always, you should consult with a mortgage professional to find the mortgage that suits your personal financial needs. An independent mortgage broker can provide you with information on a broad range of mortgage options from a wide variety of lending institutions, so you can compare features and options at a glance.

And remember, it’s worth taking some time to look beyond prime and explore what’s “under the floor” in mortgage options!

1st American Mortgage asked:


Going on the internet is a great way to start a search for Colorado mortgage rates, especially if you want a true mortgage quote from a Denver mortgage company.

Getting a Colorado online mortgage quote is a practical answer for borrowers who are looking for a Denver mortgage company and has many built-in advantages.

The Ease of Getting A Colorado Online Mortgage Quote

Online, it’s easy to apply with a Colorado or Denver mortgage company. Colorado online mortgage quote applications will take borrowers only minutes to fill out when they

have their information ready. With an online application, there is no time on hold. Instead, you’ll get a call back with loan options and Colorado mortgage rates in just a short time. The process is made to save a borrower lots of time. Borrowers will have the ability to find out exactly what a Denver mortgage company needs, so there is no time wasted with a lender waiting for the right information needed to give a true mortgage quote.

Colorado Online Mortgage Rates Help A Borrower Get A True Mortgage Quote,

Colorado online mortgage quote providers give a better quote because they have a complete and accurate profile from a lender, which assists in getting a true mortgage quote. When a lender can see exactly what is needed to make a specific and precise quote for an individual Colorado mortgage rate. With all of the information, a borrower and lender can get a true mortgage quote.

Why does that make a difference? When customers contact a potential Denver mortgage company, they are looking typically at one thing — the rate. But Colorado mortgage rates are different for different customers. No two are ever the same. So a Denver mortgage company giving a flat rate is impossible. There is no way to guarantee to  rate without having information like the amount of the loan, the price, the credit and debt status. With all of this information ahead of time, like with an online application, a Denver mortgage

company can prepare a Colorado online mortgage quote based on the detailed facts, not assumptions.

What to Watch Out For When Shopping for Colorado Online Mortgage Rates

Getting an Colorado online mortgage quote doesn’t dismiss person-to-person communication. Instead, it is a tool for accuracy and a faster way to get an accurate quote. A borrower must still communicate with a live Denver mortgage company associate. There is still a need to look over all of the information carefully to ensure there is the best overall Colorado online mortgage quote for the borrower, with not only the Colorado mortgage rate, but closing costs and other fees. A borrower should also make sure that the lender is a Denver mortgage company with the knowledge of Colorado real estate and not just an out-of-state company with out-of-state contacts.

No matter who a borrower chooses or how they start the process, they will need to put the company they ultimately pick to the test and ensure they will get a true mortgage quote and a flexible product.