The federal government is proposing to make big changes to its reverse mortgage program early next year that should make the loans safer for seniors who use them to tap home equity. Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which regulates these loans, will detail policy options that would [...] [...more]
Consumer advocates, government regulators and watchdogs have been warning seniors for several years about the risks associated with reverse mortgages. Now, the red flags are being hoisted significantly higher. The new federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued a report signaling a likely tightening of regulations for reverse loans. Regulation of all mortgages was [...] [...more]
Back when the housing market was soaring, many Americans thought of their homes as piggy banks that they could crack open at will, whether for renovating a kitchen or funding a retirement. The Great Recession put an end to that party, and in most of the country the housing market has yet to return to [...] [...more]
AARP’s legal battle against wrongful reverse mortgage foreclosures has shifted from government regulators to lenders. The AARP Foundation Litigation unit filed a class action lawsuit yesterday against Wells Fargo Bank and the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), charging that they failed to allow surviving spouses and heirs of reverse mortgage borrowers to purchase the [...] [...more]
The reverse mortgage industry is headed for its third straight year of declining loan activity in the wake of the housing crash and the exit of three of the market’s biggest lenders. New loan activity was down 37 percent in 2010 from the peak year in 2008, and 2011 will be another down year, according [...] [...more]
