When the Department of Housing and Urban Development unveiled its 2010 budget request last month, it included a request for $798 million credit subsidy for the FHA’s reverse mortgage program. It’s the first time HUD has requested a subsidy for the program and left many questioning if the HECM needs to change in order ensure […]
Category: Counseling
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that more than $58 million is available for a broad range of housing counseling programs to help families and preserve housing. The funding is an increase of $11 million, up 23% from last year according to a statement from HUD. “Now, more than ever, it is […]
The Federal Trade Commission published Housing Counselors: How to Help People Avoid Reverse Mortgage Missteps to provide guidance for counselors in indentifying false and misleading claims related to reverse mortgage offers. As an example, the FTC said that some unscrupulous lenders may try to mislead seniors about the key features of a reverse mortgage or […]
As part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s changes to HECM counseling, all HECM counselors will need to pass an exam to demonstrate their knowledge of reverse mortgages. In cooperation with HUD, AARP Foundation’s Reverse Mortgage Education Project (RMEP) will be administering the HUD HECM Counselor Exam. The HECM counseling exam has 100 […]
As the industry awaits word from Mother HUD on what counselors may, can or should do – or not – on certain key issues, questions have arisen about the purpose and product of this forthcoming federal mandate. There is little doubt that updated regulations, which are expected to bring stronger assessment tools and a financial […]
More people are tapping into retirement accounts despite the negative financial consequences, but wind up struggling to pay their mortgage anyway, said the Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) of Greater Atlanta. The counseling agency found that 29.6% of the people who called the nonprofit agency for foreclosure prevention counseling received an early distribution from their […]
With echoes of earlier calls for “net tangible benefits” from the forward world resonating, suggestions now are being floated for “financial assessments” of seniors in the mood for a reverse mortgage. Washington, D.C. attorney Jim Milano says “one policy floating around is whether seniors need some kind of financial assessment and, if so, who should […]
Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) of Greater Atlanta announced it has been approved as a national reverse mortgage counseling intermediary by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). As a result, each reverse mortgage lender in the U.S. will be required to provide their new clients a list of counseling agencies that includes […]
Along with the recent changes to HECM counseling, the Department of Housing and Urban Development is expected to unveil a new counseling protocol next month to help borrowers asses whether a reverse mortgage is the right choice for their financial situation. The new protocol will include stronger assessment tools as well as the creation of […]
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published Mortgagee Letter 2009-10 to clarify several issues regarding HECM counseling for prospective borrowers. According to ML 09-10, FHA wants to ensure that prospective borrowers initiate the request for HECM counseling. Lenders may not contact a counselor or counseling agency to refer a client, discuss a […]
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