You always knew your retirement lifestyle would involve spending as much time with the grandchildren as they were willing and able to spend with the two of you. Now in your mid-seventies, you’re finding that flying back and forth to visit families on opposite coasts has become unwieldy and expensive; coordinating visits with grandkids’ high school and college vacations and trips near impossible.You’ve hosted several come-one-come- all get-togethers at resort locations, but that is fast proving a drain on your finances as well.
After accepting an invitation this spring from former colleagues to join them on a trip to Montana in their camper, you fell in love with the concept of family vacations on wheels. Your friends’ RV, you noticed, was a mid-sized camper with a fully equipped kitchenette, bathroom and shower. You can definitely see yourselves driving to pick up each set of grandkids and spending time with them amid beautiful scenery, bypassing the cost of airfares and the hassles of arranging flights and airport pickups. You’ve begun online “window-shopping” for the right camper vehicle but are still concerned about the initial large outlay of cash needed, because that would mean tapping at least one of your retirement accounts, undoubtedly moving you into a higher tax bracket for the year.
An alternative approach to tapping your tax-deferred retirement resources might be to tap your own housing wealth by establishing a government-insured reverse mortgage, converting the equity you’ve established into the cash you need to purchase and then maintain a camper and to fund the camping trips with the two sets of grandkids. Unlike a traditional mortgage, you will not need to make installment payments on the loan, and the withdrawals you make will have no effect on your tax situation.
A reverse mortgage will allow you to use your “stationary” home to fund the purchase and upkeep of a “moving” one, enabling you to share wonderful family trips on wheels!
If you’d like to see what you might qualify for with a reverse mortgage in Indiana, or to download your Reverse Mortgage Guide Click Here (and scroll down)
Borrower must occupy home as primary residence and remain current on property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, the costs of home maintenance, and any HOA fees.