The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development posted Mortgagee Letter 09-43, which announced a new set of principal limit factors for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) HECM program. The changes will lower the principal limits for the HECM by 10%.
According to the ML, the new principal limit factors must be [...]

The California Assembly passed a bill earlier this week, which is meant to provide an additional level of protection to senior citizens considering reverse mortgages.
Passed by a vote of 49-29, SB 660 requires that a checklist be provided to the consumer prior to the mandatory counseling session and states that any person who recommends [...]

“While reverse mortgages can provide real benefits, they also have some of the same characteristics as the riskiest types of subprime mortgages – and that should set off alarm bells,” Comptroller Dugan said. The experience with subprime mortgages “clearly demonstrates the link between compliance and safety and soundness.”
Reverse mortgages provide a source of income or [...]

The Obama administration is asking taxpayers to subsidize the Federal Housing Administration’s program for reverse mortgages for the first time.
The administration has requested that Congress appropriate $798 million for the program, according to budget documents released by the White House Thursday. However, the FHA’s flagship single-family mortgage insurance program will remain self-funded, squelching concerns that [...]

Home Purchase with a Reverse Mortgage is available almost nationwide…
The Federal Housing Administration early this year approved such a deal as a form of reverse mortgage for home buyers who are 62 or older.
But in Texas, the only thing anyone can do is imagine. The home-equity-for-purchase deal is available in 49 states, but not Texas.
Here’s [...]