Senior Saves $6K on Reverse Mortgage Fees

Richard_Cashman Don’t you just love good news?

I received an interesting telephone call today from a friend and colleague, Mr. Rick Cashman. A senior citizen was just about to sign loan papers for a reverse mortgage when her neighbor happened to see my blog post warning people about over-priced loans and scams. She then clicked on the link, which connected her to my recommended ethical, honest reverse mortgage specialists.

The bottom line to this story is that Rick Cashman’s advice saved her $6,000 in upfront fees. That is huge! Six grand can mean a lot to a senior citizen. What was Rick’s commission for doing this good deed? Zero. That’s right, he helped this woman for free, because she happened to be in a state where he isn’t licensed to do loans.

“I like helping people. It’s the right thing to do,” Mr. Cashman said.

With all the negative news out these days, I thought you’d like to hear a story about one of the good guys, the Mortgage Stars, as I call them in my books.

If you know of someone who is interested in obtaining a reverse mortgage, please make them aware that not all lenders are the same, not all reverse mortgages are the same, and that all loan officers are not the same. When it comes to borrowing money, you must always do a proper shop-and-compare. It just might save you $6,000.

Happy Presidents Day!

Innocent 91-yr Widow Muscled Out of Her Home

Evicted  A sweet little lady who’s managed to live to the age of 91 deserves respect. I don’t think there’s any argument there. So why is our government agency, HUD (U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development) muscling Jeanette Ogle out of her home — when she owns it free-and-clear?

Great question, especially since on their “About” page, HUD claims one of their goals is to protect consumers. Just who do they think they’re protecting by tossing a nonagenarian out into the streets? This is one story that really makes my blood boil, and I’m glad Kenneth R. Harney exposed it in his syndicated column “Nation’s Housing.”

In 2007, Mr. and Mrs. Ogle refinanced their home into a reverse mortgage. A reverse mortgage is a program for senior citizens wherein they can collect cash from the equity of their home. The intent is to help old people who need extra income to live comfortably. Rather than die equity rich and live in poverty, they can receive a monthly check taken from their home equity. And why not? They put the money into the home, so why shouldn’t they be able to take some out? For seniors who need supplemental income, the program makes sense.

However, when the Ogles took their reverse mortgage, the Weasel who called himself a loan officer had only Mr. Ogle sign for the mortgage. At the time, Mrs. Ogle did not understand what was happening. She sat along with her husband and signed all the paperwork she was given to sign. She didn’t understand she was signing an acknowledgement that only her husband was on the loan. No doubt, her husband didn’t understand that either. Only the deceptive loan officer, underwriter, and possibly the signer and funder–all the people inside the business–understood.

In 2010, Mr. Ogle passed away, leaving his wife a widow. Now that the only person on the mortgage has deceased, the loan servicer, Reverse Mortgage Solutions of Spring, Texas, has initiated a foreclosure action. Once the 91-year old is booted out, the house ownership goes to the big government agency, HUD.  Like HUD needs another property, right?

HUD has “no comment.”  Cowards!

Handily, HUD has on their website an online form where people can send in a complaint about someone who violates housing discrimination laws. I’d love to see HUD flooded with protests on behalf of Mrs. Ogle. If enough people come to her defense, maybe the public can muscle HUD into backing off of their intention to strong-arm a little lady out of the home she and her husband paid for long ago.

Please feel free to pass this on to others in behalf of Mrs. Ogle via Twitter, Facebook, email, or any other way.