Posted on 03/09/2011 3:47:24 PM PST by fightinJAG
Reverse mortgages, which pay older homeowners a regular sum against the equity in their house, are supposed to shield borrowers from economic upheaval. But the popular loans have become tangled up in the real estate collapse.
AARP, the seniors’ organization, filed suit Tuesday against the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which regulates reverse mortgages. The suit asserts that policy changes by HUD are pushing older homeowners into foreclosure.
The case was filed in Federal District Court for the District of Columbia by the AARP Foundation, the organization’s charitable arm, and the law firm of Mehri & Skalet on behalf of the surviving spouses of three homeowners who had bought reverse mortgages. All three are facing eviction, the suit says.
“HUD has illegally and without notice changed the rules in the middle of the game at the expense of vulnerable older people,” said Jean Constantine-Davis, a senior lawyer at the AARP Foundation.
The lawsuit focuses on reverse mortgages where
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I, for one, despise the commercials on TV for these reverse mortgages. I see them as nothing more than a way for the government or some lending instutition to steal people’s property.
AARP...be careful, or you’ll upset your Uncle Barack.
the "reverse" mortage has always struck me as another generational gimmick....it used to be that elders would help the young and pass along a legacy....
now, its spend every penny and waste away every dime order to be an "active" old senior and go to the casino every day...
This is rotten by the government. But no different than the Obama administration doing on others whom tried to refinance through his program and are being ripped off too.
Please. I know for a FACT that Robert Wagner would not steer me wrong!
If you are going to sell the house just do it. Reverse mortgage makes one become the servant of the borrower especially in these corrupt times by the expert cheaters in the financial world.
“If it sounds too good to be true....”
I have been suspicious of reverse mortgages, since I saw the first commercial years ago.
They just smacked of ‘scam — buyer beware’.
Very simple, a financial scheister goes out and evaluates the situation loading everything in their favor.
Depending upon multiple factors, ie: mental health, equity, etc., etc., they make an offer. You get the idea.
The buyer never loses.
Sad but true, a lot of times the seller doesn't care anymore or doesn't know better.
If the Mr. Bennet of the story is standing in front of his house in the picture that is not a $200k in my opinion. Maybe 30-35K at most.
Not a $200K house.
In Indiana, you’d be totally correct.
I don’t know about the East Coast. Because of the jobs boom at the FedGov maybe things are much stronger there.
What’s even more astounding is that the loan balance is actually $300,000 now.
Strange in one case, a woman wants the house, even though she was not married to the guy when he did the mortgage, in the case of the black cook, he deeded his interest to his wife and now says he did not do that. Sell you house buy a small camper and live off the state of Florida. End of problem. Every business has its share of crooks, never deal with damn mortgage brokers, go to the local lender that has been around a long time.
so does “a sucker born every minute” apply here.
We checked them out. The fine print gives the lender 50% of the appreciation when the house is sold, besides all the other problems.
The only legacy of lasting worth an “elder” can truly pass on to their young, is the intangible but priceless gift of love, and high expectations for their progeny to follow a clear example of how to live a joy filled life.
Money is a nice bonus, but will not “help” the young in the long term.
Are you waiting for someone to die, so you can get your hands on your “inheritance”?
Did you know there are legions of lawyers out there willing to guide dishonest people through “the system” , so all those old people who thought they had provided for themselves in their old age, can be helped to scam “the system” to pay for years of nursing home care?
The AARP can go to straight to hell, as far as I am concerned.
Along with the vast majority of the “baby boomer generation” of which I am technically a member, albeit on the tail end.
We can only pray that “generation Xers” will actively rebel against their blatantly corrupt parents and grandparents.
Just ask his wife, Natalie Wood.
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