The Los Angeles Times featured a story about the HECM for purchase over the weekend which should help inform the public that the program is available. LA Times journalist Lew Sichelman writes about how an older couple purchased a $240,000 home and will have no mortgage payments because of the new program.
The couple sold their house last May and moved into an apartment until they decided what they wanted to do with the rest of their lives. But when their real estate broker showed them they would have paid $68,000 in rent over six years and "have nothing to show for it," they decided to rejoin the ranks of owners.
By using the proceeds from the sale of their old home, the Oregon couple had their down payment and because of the HECM for purchase, they wouldn’t have any mortgage payments. Monte Howard, director of affinity marketing for Generation Mortgage, the Smiths’ lender, believes it will be the nation’s burgeoning legion of seniors, not the lending community, "who are going to teach us how this product really works."
"Since the product is brand new, there really isn’t a typical scenario just yet," said Howard. "But one of the most exciting is that seniors like the Smiths who have been out of the housing market will be able to come back and consider homeownership again. This is their chance, especially with prices as low as they are."
The San Francisco Chronicle also published a story about seniors using the HECM for purchase, you can read it here.
Reverse mortgage variation is aimed at seniors looking to downsize
