A little over two years ago, you accepted a buyout offer from the company where you’d worked for thirty-one years. At the time, there seemed to be several alternate employment opportunities (in any event, you would have been let go in the downsizing). Unfortunately, none of those other offers materialized. You had remarried just prior to losing the job; even with the buyout sum, the careful plans the two of you had made for sharing expenses – and for  liquidating debt prior to retirement – became impossible to execute. Your husband, who is 64, plans to work up until his age 67. His position seems very secure, bringing in enough to cover basic expenses for both of you. In contrast you, at age 63, have despaired of replacing your income at anywhere near its former level. You’ve used up your settlement money and have gone through the bulk of your investment accounts, but have so far managed to avoid tapping into your own 401K or IRA. 

You are the sole owner of your home, and the plan was for you to continue to cover the mortgage payments, with the home fully paid for by the time you reach age 65. The regular upkeep and maintenance expenses have been largely covered by your husband. Your estate planning documents stipulate that, should you be the first to die, he can choose to remain in the home for the rest of his life, but then the property goes to your daughter. Because of your current job situation, you would not qualify for a second mortgage on the house, so spending down your retirement funds seems the only choice.

Tapping into the equity in your home equity is possible, whether you’re employed or not. Consider applying for a reverse mortgage rather than a second forward mortgage. Income requirements are minimal, since you will not be obligated to make monthly payments. The proceeds from the reverse mortgage loan would first go towards paying off the remaining first mortgage, this relieving you of the need to make mortgage payments.  Although you would be the only borrower, your husband, as an age-eligible non-borrowing spouse, would be able to continue living in the home should he survive you. Meanwhile, your estate plan could still name your daughter as heir to the home. 

She would have the choice of paying off the mortgage and keeping the home, or of selling it, retaining any excess proceeds. Meanwhile, if you are able to find employment and want to build back the home equity, you can choose to make mortgage payment to the extent you are able with the added benefit that any payment made against the reverse mortgage balance would also flow dollar for dollar into a line of credit guaranteed to grow at the same rate the mortgage balance is accruing interest.

When best-laid plans go awry, using your housing wealth can save the situation.

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

It’s ironic, those recent headlines about forgiveness of student loans, since the two of you had agreed long ago to pay for your three children’s college education (and did just that). Post Bachelor’s degree, the concept was, each child would be responsible for his or her own support. Your general estate plan directed that any assets remaining after the second one of you dies, including the value of your home) would be equally divided among the kids. You didn’t expect to ever need your children’s support, and they, in turn, were not led to expect support from you during your lifetimes. In the past couple of years, however, several things have happened to make you consider deviating from that firm set of rules.

One of your grandchildren was severely injured in a traffic accident and is expected to require years of medical care and rehabilitation; a personal injury lawsuit has been filed, but any compensation is months or years away. Meanwhile, following a very brave struggle, your daughter and son-in-law were forced out of business in a prime location and are starting to rebuild. Knowing your general outlook, neither of these families has appealed to you for help, but you simply cannot be comfortable withholding support for these two families.

While your own situation is very stable, you want to proceed with caution.  The mortgage on your recently remodeled home has been completely paid off, so one option might be a home equity loan. Your living expenses are largely covered by two pensions and by social security; you rarely draw upon your investment assets, most of which are in tax-sheltered retirement account (so that only the after-tax net proceeds would be available to help your children with a meaningful lump sum gift. (you would consult your estate planning attorney about making loans that would be forgiven upon the second death, but first you need to decide what funds to use without negatively affecting your own lifestyle.).

You’ve mentioned using your housing wealth to provide the needed help for family members.  Rather than taking out a home equity loan, however, you might consider using that “housing wealth” by taking out a reverse mortgage, avoiding both the need to make mortgage payment or the generation of taxable income. You could adjust your estate plan to accommodate the “early legacy” you’d be giving to two of your three children. Most important, you’d be helping these two families when your help is truly needed, yet doing that with the least affect on your own lifestyle.

Yes, it’s ironic, but sometimes, reversals in fortune can force us to reverse our thinking.

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

After your husband died several years ago, you had been strongly considering selling your home. After retiring from your position as executive assistant, you contemplated living in a retirement community. Since then, you’ve changed the direction of your planning. With your mother intending to move back to the Midwest, you’re considering a different plan, namely building an addition onto your existing home to create a separate apartment for her. Fortunately, there is sufficient space on the property to accommodate such an addition, with a separate entrance for her, yet with access to the downstairs of your own living quarters. You’ve spent the last six months getting proposals from builders, even researching the zoning laws.

Your mom has offered to help pay for the renovations, but, while you will allow her to contribute to the upkeep of the home, you know her finances are not set up for a large lump sum commitment. You’ve been considering different options for financing the structural addition and the furnishing of the apartment, perhaps cashing in some investments and taking out a second mortgage (your first mortgage will be paid off next year).

You’re certainly not alone in exploring multi-generational living. According to the Pew Research Center, 20% of the US population shares their homes with another generation. But, instead of a second mortgage, you might consider tapping into your home equity in a different way, using a reverse mortgage. Using the proceeds of the loan, you might not need to cash in investment assets, especially since Mom will be helping with your everyday household expenses going forward. With an FHA-insured HECM Adjustable Rate Loan line of credit, you’ll be able to draw the amount needed to finance each stage of the work. You’ll continue to pay real estate taxes and insurance (on the newly appraised value of the home, of course), but there will no longer be a monthly payment due.

A reverse mortgage might prove to be the key for creating the perfect new home for Mom.

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

With summer swiftly waning, you’re beginning to think about the winter holidays.  Unfortunately, with inflation having noticeably strained your budget, you have concerns around your traditional role as “Uncle Santa”. Each Christmas for the past ten or more years, you’ve made Christmas gifts to each of your nieces and nephews in the form of a contribution to a college fund. While two nephews have graduated, you’re carrying on the same gifting tradition with your two grand-nieces. It will be a squeeze, but you imagine you can keep the gift-giving going through 2022. Still, you’re dreading having the overly intrusive conversation about the state of your finances that will inevitably follow your news. The young ones, along with their parents, have come to expect those gifts as a natural part of the family holiday rituals. In reality, meanwhile, you’ve managed your post-retirement “finances” very responsibly. Your home is mortgage-free, your car paid for, and there is no credit card debt to speak of. The “squeeze” you’re experiencing have to do with escalating insurance premiums (including both auto and long term care insurance), plus the rise in gasoline and food costs.

One solution might be to use your “housing wealth” as a resource, arranging for a reverse mortgage on your home. There will be no mandatory mortgage payments, but of course you’ll be responsible for property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, and home maintenance costs, just as you are now. Using that reverse mortgage line of credit, you’ll be able to make those annual Christmas gifts. In a way, you’ll be giving a “gift” to yourself to be able to see your nieces and nephews avoid crippling college debt. Meanwhile, should your car need replacing at some future date, you’ll have ready access to the funds needed.

A reverse mortgage might be Santa’s gift to you – a gift that lets you keep on giving.

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

Ever since first falling in love with this house some twenty five years ago, the two of you have agreed that this is where you want to spend the rest of your lives. Now, moving into retirement, with the house paid for, you have been taking steps to keep up the value and appearance of the property and grounds.  But as you’ve only now begun to realize, this home, like many of those of your friends and neighbors, was not designed with senior citizens in mind. Though thankfully, you’re hardly ready for a wheelchair ramp or stair lifts, there are some important renovations and repairs that will need to be done pretty soon; other changes that will become important in years to come. Installing solar roofing might involve upfront costs, but would probably save money on monthly expenses.  After doing extensive “homework”, getting a number of cost estimates, you’re now trying to decide how to best finance all these first-stage renovations, looking ahead to find room in your retirement budget for future costs. Options under consideration include a home equity line of credit and cashing in a portion of your investments, (neither of which had you considered in your original retirement planning). Also a possibility for financing later adaptations is selling the Florida timeshare you’ve owned for decades.

It seems one option you’ve apparently failed to consider is using the equity in the house itself as a financing tool for as-needed aging-in-place adaptations. A reverse mortgage line of credit would eliminate the need to make payments on a home equity line of credit, while providing a source for tax free withdrawals you would make on an as-needed basis to pay for the different stages of home adaptations. You’d continue enjoying the timeshare (perhaps selling it later should travel become a burden or should you need an additional funding source). While interest would be charged on the funds you withdraw, the unused portion of your home equity line of credit would continue to grow at a rate guaranteed to match the interest accruing on your silent loan balance. 

While the house may not have been designed with senior needs in mind, a reverse mortgage can help it become “future-proof .”

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

Of all your investments, the one that, ironically, feels most comfortable right now is the one that’s the least exciting — a fixed annuity you bought seven years ago. That annuity has been faithfully delivering a monthly deposit into your bank account. Given the turmoil in both stocks and bonds, you’re now wondering whether you shouldn’t have put more of your assets to work in that “boring” fashion!

Now retired from your full-time career, you’ve been supplementing your income from Social Security and a modest pension with part time work. Your home is all but paid for, but the recent dramatic escalation in everyday living costs has begun to “squeeze” your budget. A couple of years ago, you converted some growth investments into those designed to generate higher income, but it has been uncomfortable watching the basic portfolio value erode.  Even understanding that converting to fixed annuities means using up principal over time (not to mention reducing the possibility of leaving a legacy to nieces and nephews), you’re wondering if setting up more fixed annuity income shouldn’t be your next move.  You’re facing a dilemma: Having more fixed monthly income, income flow guaranteed for life, is very appealing. Still you know your expenses are inevitably going to increase over time, and any fixed annuity payment will be just that – fixed.

One path to consider might be a reverse mortgage, which would be a way of “annuitizing” your housing wealth. So long as you are still occupying your home, keeping up with homeowner’s insurance, property taxes, and home repairs, you can make use of the equity you’ve built up in your home. There are two approaches to consider, with the first converting your equity into a “tenure” payment, in which regular monthly income payments would continue for the rest of your life regardless of changes in the value of your home, and regardless of the mortgage loan balance!

A second approach would allow more flexibility, in that you would establish a line of credit, taking “draws” as needed. Meanwhile the unused portion of the line of credit would continue to grow at a rate guaranteed to match the interest accruing on your silent loan balance, giving you much greater control over the “annuity” income flow, possibly even allowing you to make lifetime gifts to those nieces and nephews.

While you will want to consult your advisors before committing to annuitizing your housing wealth, such a plan will help stabilize your cash flow without needing to sell out of your portfolio investments just now when they are “down”.

Your home can be a “fixed annuity”, but one with wiggle room!

https://mutualreverse.com/david-garrison/

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

After four decades as a kindergarten teacher, you retired just as the pandemic was getting underway. With your pension, investments, and Social Security allowing you to cover expenses with some luxuries added, you are now considering ways to raise your standard of living without re-entering full time employment.  One thing you’ve been considering is the purchase of a franchise in a children’s educational game and toy business, which is an enterprise you can run out of your home. 

Other than your home mortgage (now approximately two years from being totally paid off), you have managed to remain debt-free. Coming up with the franchise fee, however, would involve both borrowing on a credit card and cashing in a chunk of your IRA Rollover account (losing a third of the value to tax). At the same time, you realize you’ll need to sacrifice in order to build an income source that can stand you in good stead during your retirement years. There are less expensive franchises, but this one seems right, given your background in the education field. 

Don’t forget what might be your biggest asset, which is the equity you’ve built up in your home.A reverse mortgage will allow you to tap that resource without the need to generate new income tax liability. Once your franchise business becomes profitable, you may choose to partially or fully repay the line of credit, but until you leave the home, there will be no obligatory repayment.

Your housing wealth can be the secret to funding your new education-related home business.

https://mutualreverse.com/david-garrison/

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

Even before starting the process of getting competitive quotes on the job, you can see that the framing around many of the windows is going to need reinforcing or even rebuilding. While your retirement planning is focused on long term benefits, such an ambitious redesign project would require you to cash in a substantial chunk of your investments and savings; obviously the timing for that is far from optimal. With your primary mortgage all but paid off and with interest rates on the rise, you’re reluctant to apply for a new loan.

Consider financing your energy-saving plans by using the “energy” contained in your own housing wealth in the form of a reverse mortgage. You would draw down (in the form of tax-free withdrawals) only as much of the available proceeds as needed to finance each phase of the window reconstruction project.  With no mortgage payments due until you leave the home, there would be no need to tap your investment portfolio.

Meanwhile, the energy cost savings will help fulfill your goal of retirement “budgetary survival”.  A reverse mortgage can help provide a new “window” for retirement planning.

https://mutualreverse.com/david-garrison/

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894

For a variety of reasons, the two of you have made the monumental decision to retire from your careers at the end of the next calendar year. The frustrations and issues have begun to outweigh the motivation to keep working, and, with your home fully paid for and no credit card debt, you believe that you are financially prepared to sever ties with your employer towards the end of 2023.

One big challenge you face is that there will be 3-4 years respectively before you can qualify for health insurance through Medicare. While you will both qualify for COBRA through your employer, that insurance is highly expensive and the coverage will not last until you are Medicare-eligible, you’ve learned. You have begun doing your homework on marketplace plans, which, assuming no surgeries are needed will be the way to go. Unfortunately, you will lose the excellent dental and vision coverage your employer plan provides. The only other significant concern is that, while both your cars are paid for, one will soon need replacing within the next year or so.

Until you become Medicare-eligible, accessing your housing wealth through a reverse mortgage line of credit might ease the wait. In the event that either or both of you need medical or dental treatment with cost that significantly exceeds insurance coverage, you can tap your line of credit. In addition, the equity in your home can be used to replace the car. All along the way, the unused portion of your line of credit will continue to grow, providing a reserve for other needs as you move into your life as retirees.

Between here and Medicare, a reverse mortgage can ease the wait. Then, beyond the magic Medicare qualification age, you’ll have the peace of mind knowing you have a backup resource. .

https://mutualreverse.com/david-garrison/

David Garrison
Home Equity Retirement Specialist
NMLS # 1595194
Serving the State of Indiana
p (317) 644-2595 c (765) 516-0130
e [email protected]

2169 East Rutland Lane, Martinsville, IN 46151
Corporate NMLS #1025894