Time isn’t on the side of seniors in housing slump
Posted on 26 July 2012
By Mark Miller
Permanent URL of this article: http://retirementrevised.com/money/time-isnt-on-the-side-of-seniors-in-housing-slump
Prior to 2008, many baby boomers assumed they were set for retirement. They would fund those golden years by tapping into their homes if they hadn’t saved enough in their 401(k) plans.
But home equity no longer looks like a safe Plan B for a fast-growing group of pre-retirees and seniors.
About 3.5 million homeowners are “underwater” on their mortgages, meaning they owe more than their properties are worth, according to a report released last week by the AARP Public Policy Institute. The rate of foreclosures is lower for homeowners under age 50, while the 50+ population experienced a much higher rate of growth in foreclosures from 2007 to 2011.
