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The Changing Role of Home Equity

By administrator on 7/8/2009 3:46 PM

MetLife, in collaboration with the National Council on Aging, has published an insightful and inspiring new study entitled Tapping Home Equity in Retirement that argues for a major change in the American perspective on the role of housing equity for seniors, "shifting from a financial planning strategy that aims to preserve housing wealth to one that uses this asset as a retirement resource."

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Financial Media "Experts" and Legislators Don't Understand

By administrator on 7/6/2009 3:40 PM

A typical day for a reverse mortgage specialist starts early just like the rest of you. We wake up, shower, shave, brush our teeth, and run out the door hoping we didn't leave the coffee pot on or the back door unlocked after letting the dogs out.

However, many members of the media and legislators would have you think we are scam artist, creating devious ways to manipulate the most protected class of citizens we have in our society today. Truth is most of us in the reverse mortgage industry share a passion for helping seniors and treat each client as if we were working with our parents or grandparents.

We continue on to our first appointment at Mr. and Mrs. Smith’s modest 1960’s one level ranch home in an older established neighborhood; with the outdated wallpaper, carpeting, and family pictures covering the walls showing off the adult children and their little ones. He is 73 and she 71, both retired but he has been working part-time at the local golf course to help supplement their retirement income. There is a $50,000 mortgage on the home and the medical bills still methodically come in from his major hip surgery last year. The financial stress has hit its tipping point.

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Older adults are finding unique ways to use their home equity

By administrator on 6/4/2009 8:59 AM

Mary was not surprised by her doctor’s diagnosis of “early stage dementia”. She had suspected as much for some time and now it was official. Mary’s family was prepared for the news and was very supportive. They wanted Mary to relocate to Charleston from Columbia so they could offer more help and support as her condition progressed. Mary, with her family’s help, had identified a continuing care retirement community that offered independent living, assisted living and skilled care if needed. The community would cost between $3,000 and $4,000 per month depending on several options. Mary had counted on the sale of her home to provide the funds to pay for her relocation and monthly costs. But with the downturn in the real estate market and tighter mortgage lending requirements Mary and her family are struggling to find the funds to make the move.

Mary’s situation is being repeated all across the country. Older Americans and their families are struggling to pay for retirement and care services not covered by Medicare, Medicaid, long term care insurance or health insurance. Funds from home sales, once a reliable source of funds, may not be available when needed amid the housing-market decline. Investment portfolios, another source of retirement funding has also declined significantly. In these difficult economic times alternative strategies are needed to fund retirement living or care services.

Franklin Funding is partnering with individuals, families and with retirement communities, assisted living facilities, medical and non-medical home care services to develop alternative funding solutions. “The needs and resources required by each individual and family are usually unique and requires a customized approach to funding alternatives” says Paul Franklin of Franklin Funding. “We work with other professionals such as financial advisors, attorneys and service providers to develop a funding plan that will work for all concerned”.

For a no-cost, no-obligation discussion of alternative funding solutions please contact David Heilman, at Franklin Funding, Inc. at Ph.843-762-2218 or email him at david@franklin-funding.com.

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Senior using a reverse mortgage to remain in home after losing his job

By administrator on 5/19/2009 1:15 PM

The Start Telegram published an article about how one senior is using a reverse mortgage to save his home after being laid off from his job as a salesman in the check printing industry for 34 years. "The last thing I wanted to do was lose my home," he said. "And I didn’t want to depend on using all my savings or depleting my separation payment to pay my mortgage." Click here to read the article....

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Franklin Funding attended the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders (NRMLA) Conference in Orlando, FL.

By administrator on 5/9/2009 7:45 AM

NRMLA held their 3 regional conference of the year last week in Orlando, FL and the conference was well attended by many of the industry leaders and newcomers around the southeast.

There was valuable information on a number of industry items – one of which is the new legislation allowing senior homeowners’ to purchase a new home using the FHA insured reverse mortgage. Under this new program a senior homeowner can purchase a primary residence in a single transaction with the use of reverse mortgage proceeds and cash down payment – with NO additional monthly mortgage payments.

Here is an example:

Mr. and Mrs. Jones are both 76 years old and live in New York – however all their children and grandchildren are living in South Carolina and the discussions of moving south have started.

They would just need to sell their current home in New York (no pressure there) and purchase a new home in South Carolina with CASH from that sale. Or they may want to consider using FHA insured reverse mortgage proceeds along with CASH to purchase the new home and not incur additional monthly mortgage payments.

The second option allows more flexibility to the senior homeowner(s) and wouldn’t require the home to sell in New York in order to allow the move down south and closer to family.

THE ESTIMATED NUMBERS - Age 76

Home for sale in New York $600,000

Home purchase price in South Carolina $350,000

Reverse mortgage proceeds $222,000

CASH NEEDED TO CLOSE $128,000

Once the Smith’s were able to sell their home in New York this would allow them to focus $472,000 towards other retirement needs instead of $250,000 if they had paid ALL cash for the new home in South Carolina.

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Franklin Funding participates in the Financial Planners Association of SC 2009 Symposium

By administrator on 5/5/2009 8:19 AM

Franklin Funding was pleased to participate in the Financial Planners Association of SC 2009 Annual Symposium. The event gave us a chance to meet with professionals and not only share information about reverse mortgages, but also other senior home equity solutions that might be a better fit for a clients particular situation.

Pictured here are Paul Franklin and David Heilman

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The Crisis Nobody Wants to Talk About

By administrator on 4/30/2009 7:10 PM

None of us can pick up the newspaper, turn on the television, or go online without being reminded that we are facing a financial crisis unlike any seen before in our history. However another crisis is seldom discussed and it affects everyone; mainly the largest growing population in our country.

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