About Me
Serving The Villages & Central Florida
Howard began his career as an accountant and auditor in the banking, healthcare, and insurance sectors in Louisville, Kentucky. During those early years, he went back to law school at night for four years while working as an accountant during the day. After obtaining his law degree and getting licensed in Kentucky and Indiana, he started his legal career working in the real estate arena. He later became a co-owner of a large title and closing agency before becoming the Kentucky State Direct Operations Manager for First American Title Insurance Company.
At one point, at the peak of their earning years, Howard and his wife, Linda, took a hiatus from the corporate world, sold their house and most of their personal belongings, bought a fifth wheel trailer and a truck, and traveled the United States and Canada for the next fifteen years. They followed their passions of travel and being immersed in nature, as they hiked, backpacked, and paddled in many of the most beautiful places on the continent. In the beginning of that epic journey, Howard started a website, RV-Dreams.com, and wrote a daily blog about their experiences. RV-Dreams grew into a large community of travelers and dreamers, and Howard and Linda eventually started putting on week-long educational conferences for those that were interested in joining the ranks of full-time RVers. That led to being asked to present seminars at RV shows and to appear on local television and radio stations to promote the RV lifestyle. Howard and Linda had found another passion – educating others by imparting well-researched knowledge with enthusiasm and transparency.
After those fifteen years of extraordinary experiences, Howard and Linda settled in The Villages Community in Central Florida, the largest active retirement community in the world. They started small businesses that served the residents of The Villages, and Howard got his real estate license and worked as a Realtor for a few years. They referred to themselves as semi-retired as Howard participated in the many sports The Villages had to offer (pickleball, softball, bowling, golf, basketball, and more) while Linda put her entertainment talents to use singing and acting in several productions.
One of Howard’s first sales as a Realtor in The Villages was possible only because of the use of a reverse mortgage, specifically the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for Purchase. He was able to help a newly divorced client move to The Villages and purchase a home she didn’t think she would be able to afford after the traumatic break-up of her marriage.
As Howard researched reverse mortgages more and more for his personal use, he discovered the many ways they could be incorporated into an overall financial plan. He was impressed with the versatility and the fact that reverse mortgages can be tweaked and customized in so many ways to meet the goals of seniors in their retirement years. His fascination grew, and he once again felt the need to educate the public and the financial and real estate professionals working with seniors about these misunderstood and underutilized financial tools.
Howard stepped out of semi-retirement, got licensed and joined Mutual of Omaha, one of the most trusted companies in the U.S. in an effort to educate about the potential of reverse mortgages and to assist seniors in determining whether or not a reverse mortgage might be a good fit for their particular situation.
If you are interested in a reverse mortgage, or you are just curious and want to find someone you can trust to sit down and explain all the pros and cons of the various programs, give Howard a call at 352-840-3111.
