"Reverse mortgages were designed to help senior homeowners age in place. While they accomplish that goal for thousands of people today, there's also a big picture benefit to the reverse mortgage program as a whole - it saves government money on entitlement programs such as Supplemental Security income and Medicaid," reports Michael Branson with SeniorJournal.com.

But the risks stemming from these loan products is still a subject of much debate.

Michael De Groote with Deseret News takes a more pros-and-cons approach in his report on reverse mortgages.