The Reverse Review, a trade magazine that has covered the reverse mortgage industry for eight years, released its final print issue aimed at Home Equity Conversion Mortgage professionals this month, as it plans a partner-focused rebrand.
The Orange, Calif.-based publication will instead povide information about reverse mortgages to key referral partners such as financial planners, builders, consumers, and real estate agents, Reverse Review editor-in-chief Jessica Guerin told RMD in an e-mail.
“Our goal in the coming year will be to create and distribute editions to professional partners and others so they can learn more about this important product,” Guerin said.
The newer version of The Reverse Review will feature partner-specific content with print issues distributed primarily through events such as trade shows, conferences, and professional development classes, Guerin said — for instance, a real estate trade group could include copies in gift bags distributed at a networking event. Advertisers will continue to be offered space in the publication, with an option to apply their own names to a consumer-focused edition for distribution to prospective borrowers, Guerin said.
The Reverse Review follows multiple other industry players in an attempt to grow the industry through partnerships with the kinds of experts that play into a borrower’s decision-making process. It’s also the latest evolution for The Reverse Review, a publication originally founded in 2008 by AppraiserLoft CEO Aman Makkar. After the San Diego-based appraisal management firm went under in 2011, American Advisors Group CEO Reza Jahangiri purchased a majority ownership stake in a partnership with Erik Richard, CEO of the Landmark Network, Inc. appraisal firm.
The first two audience-specific editions will be released in the fall.
“After years of working with the dedicated people of this industry, we truly believe in the HECM’s potential to help millions of Americans live a more comfortable retirement,” Guerin said. “We want to aid in the collective mission to spread awareness about this important financial product, and we hope that producing insightful content for those outside the field might help move the needle in some way.”
Editor’s note: Jessica Guerin of the Reverse Review occasionally contributes to Reverse Mortgage Daily.
Written by Alex Spanko
