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Chicago Broker's Reverse Mortgages Could Help Seniors Pay For Long-Term Care
Author : Shelley Baughman
Submitted : 2011-11-18 01:49:19 Word Count : 655 Popularity: 0
Tags: finance, loans, business, news, gossip, auto racing, arts, NASCAR
After the Budget Control Act of 2011 was recently signed into law by President Barack Obama, the United States faces the challenge of finding ways to save more than a trillion dollars over 10 years, or automatic sequestration will remove it from mandatory and discretionary spending.
Part of the conversation around the recession and the national debt has been healthcare; should it be universal? Should Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare continue to exist, and if so, in what way? The answers obviously don't come easy—health care especially has been a topic of passionate debate among legislators and American citizens.
The recession affects every industry in the country, including the health industry as well as the real estate industry. But what many people might not know is how closely related the health and real estate industries are. The link between them also connects them to the recent debt ceiling legislation: money savings for seniors.
In recent years, reverse mortgages haven't been the most popular option offered to the elderly by financial planners; the mortgage plans often are plagued with misconceptions that cause fear and uncertainty for seniors. Scott Tucker, a Chicago-area mortgage broker and loan officer, works to ease those fears and debunk the myths surrounding reverse mortgage plans through workshops, radio appearances and a book he authored, titled "Reverse Mortgages: what you need to know from Z to A."
There is some truth behind the fear that a reverse mortgage will result in enormous debt and loss of property; that is, a reverse mortgage might not be the best idea for a family who plans to move several more times and who have moderate monthly income—but for a senior who will likely stay in a home for the rest of his or her life, and who has a low monthly income and an expensive mortgage, the additional cash flow a reverse mortgage provides is invaluable.
According to the National Council on Aging, half of households headed by someone 62 or older could get more than $70,000 each from a reverse mortgage. That amount of money, even spread over a couple of years, could allow an elderly person to comfortably afford long-term care for themselves, resulting in less of a need for Medicaid or Medicare.
The fear of the pitfalls of a reverse mortgage can often be remedied with a simple conversation with a broker the person trusts. Before he began working on reverse mortgages, Tucker built his career on connecting with people, accruing a substantial client base for his mortgage marketing system largely under the radar of mainstream real estate firm competitors. He used what he called a direct emotional response mortgage marketing system to very precisely target niche markets with people he knew were likely to do business with him. By appealing to their person as well as their pocketbook, as well as being unconventionally outspoken and honest, Tucker crafted relationships between his clients, a skill that no doubt serves him well in reverse mortgage brokering.
Fear of reverse mortgage failure likely goes hand-in-hand with Medicaid's home equity exemption; Medicaid exempts people's homes and property valued between $500,000 and $750,000 in several states. Because Medicaid has been around so long and people are comfortable with it, they don't see a reason to use home equity when Medicaid already covers them.
Now, real estate brokers like Tucker are calling for the Medicaid exemption to be eliminated to encourage more people to consider reverse mortgages. Like Tucker has been doing for years, one popular argument appeals to people's emotions in explaining that most seniors would rather remain in their homes through aging and death rather than give up everything and go to a nursing home or assisted living facility.
Scott Tucker's mortgage strategies are catching on, and if they do so enough, they could spark a revolution by using home equity to pay for seniors' long-term care.
Author's Resource Box
Shelley Baughman has been keeping a close eye on Scott Tucker lately. You can go to http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sub-prime-mortgage-industry-expert-scott-tucker-says-sub-prime-market-not-over-58289162.html for more updates.
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