Reverse Your Mortgage

Caregivers helped with Reverse Mortgages by giving relief: 1/3 of US population are caregivers, average age is 48 yr old female http://ping.fm/2QBA5

See Congress Debate Reverse Mortgage Amendment

See Congress Debate Reverse Mortgage Amendment.

Reverse Mortgage debate in the House of Representatives.

Who Was Supposed To Be Watching Grandma?

There is a popular tune played this time of year called “Grandma Got Run Over by A Reindeer” which relates that Grandma -- after drinking too much eggnog -- went out into the winter cold to get her medication and was run over by a reindeer. The question is, “Who was supposed to be watching Grandma?”

Though this little tune is just for fun, it may very well raise alarms to many caregivers of the elderly. Caregivers know that even at a holiday party they cannot let down their diligent watch over their elderly loved one. As far-fetched as it may sound, with all the people and noise, an elderly family member with dementia or Alzheimer’s may be enjoying the family gathering and then suddenly become confused and walk to the door and leave.

For family caregivers the added stress of the holidays with decorating, shopping, parties and keeping up with all the family traditions is an overwhelming quest. Feelings of isolation, depression and sadness come with this added stress. There are millions of Americans who are caring for elderly frail loved ones and most of these caregivers will go through some of these emotions, especially this time of year.

There are some things you can do as a caregiver to help you and those you care for enjoy the holiday season.

First take care of yourself. Try to eat right, get plenty of sleep and exercise. This will help reduce stress and strengthen your ability to cope with caregiving responsibilities.

Prioritize your holiday traditions. Perhaps instead of cooking a large family dinner, have everyone bring his or her favorite dish. Use paper plates. Forfeit the traditional outside light decorating for a lighted wreath on the front door. Choose one or two parties or concerts to attend instead of trying to do it all.

Arrange for help. Call on other family members to help with the caregiving while you do your shopping or go out for the evening. If family is not available, ask your church group or a neighbor if they would donate a few hours.

Use community services. Many senior centers provide meals for the elderly and supervised activities, onsite, at no charge or a minimal charge. For locating senior services in your state, call your state Area Agency on Aging or check the national locator website at http://www.n4a.org/

Use adult day care services. Some assisted living facilities provide day activities and meals for seniors on a day by day basis. Other organizations called "adult day service providers" specialize exclusively in this sort of care support at a reasonable cost. These support services provide respite for caregivers from their caregiving responsibilities as well as social interaction for their elderly family members. There is a cost for adult day services, but the benefit for all is worth it.

For example:

Jean had brought her mother into her home to care for her when mom's Alzheimer’s made it impossible for her to be alone. When the Christmas season approached, Jean realized she had to make some choices. She did not want to give up the traditions she had set with her daughters in shopping and lunches, but it wouldn’t be possible with her caregiving responsibilities. In searching for a solution, Jean visited an adult day services facility near her home. She found she could schedule the days she needed off for her mother to come in. The adult day services company also provided transportation and would pick up mom and bring her home in the evening.

Although Jean's mother was not sure she would like to go at first, she found she enjoyed the programs, meals and conversation with new friends and the activities provided.

The time it gave Jean to have for herself was worth the extra cost for the day care.

Technology to the rescue. Here is a solution that would have kept “Grandma” from going out in the winter cold and getting run over by a reindeer. Companies that have created monitoring systems, security alarms and other safety equipment are “tweaking” them to adapt to the needs of seniors and their care givers.

Here are a few examples:

• Ankle or wrist bands that monitor location and alert the provider when a person has gone beyond the designated perimeter, such as out the front door of the house.
• Motion detectors. Set throughout the home, motion detectors allow someone outside the home to follow a senior as he or she moves through the house.
• Smart medication dispensers. Live monitoring and dispensing of pills.
• Emergency response alert. At a touch of a button on a desktop monitor, bracelet or necklace, emergency help is summoned.

Whether providing care in your home or helping senior family members in their own homes, your use of monitoring and “tech” help aids can provide extra safety for your loved ones, and peace of mind for you.

You are not alone. Join a caregiving help group. Your local senior center may have one or go on the internet to find one. Hearing about other caregivers' problems and solutions and being able to share your own and ask questions is a great way to relieve stress and gain a new perspective. Check out websites like the National Family Caregivers Association at http://www.nfcacares.org/

Work with a Senior Care Professional. Recognize that you are doing the very best you know how. You are not a geriatric health care practitioner, geriatric care manager, home care nurse or aide, hospice provider or family mediation counselor, nor do you have the years of training and experience these professionals have, but you can definitely use their experience. In fact, using a senior care specialist will make caregiving easier for you and more beneficial for your elderly family member.

As an example:

Mark stopped by his father Dan’s home every night after work to help with any errands or things he needed around the house. He began to notice that Dan was not showering, dressing or even fixing meals some days. Another concern was his father's growing confusion and disorientation. A trip to the family doctor only brought more concern to Mark, since the doctor claimed it was just the aging process that caused the confusion.

Wanting a second professional opinion on what was best for his father, Mark hired Shelly -- a Professional Geriatric Care Manger -- to do an assessment. Shelly arranged for Mark and Dan to see a geriatrician, who advised that proper meals and an increase in some vitamins, would help clear up the confusion and disorientation. Shelly arranged for a home care company to come in daily to help with personal needs and prepare meals.

Soon Dan was back to his old self and able to function on his own.

You can find a wide variety of care professionals in your area on the National Care Planning Council website at www.longtermcarelink.net.

One more thing to remember. As a family caregiver, the greatest gift you are giving this holiday season is “Love.”

The ABCs of reverse mortgages - WREX.com – Rockford’s News Leader

The "ABC's of Reverse Mortgages", interview by Rachel L. Sheedy of Kiplinger's Retirement Report interviews Jeff Lewis Chairman of Generation Mortgage, September 09"  The ABCs of reverse mortgages - WREX.com – Rockford’s News Leader.

Long Term Care for Senior Veterans

 

In the year 1919 President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 as Armistice Day to honor those Veterans who served during World War I. On November 11, 1954, Armistice Day was proclaimed a legal national holiday and the name was changed to "Veterans Day" to honor all veterans of all wars.

Every November 11, ceremonies are held throughout the United States honoring Veterans of wars. A National Ceremony is held at Arlington Cemetery at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where the laying of the presidential wreath and military playing of “Taps” is presented.
Since its establishment in 1930, the Department of Veterans Affairs has evolved to supporting and aiding the nation’s veterans in numerous ways. One of these services for example, the Veterans Health Administration, is the largest single provider of medical care in the United States. Its 22 regions with 154 hospitals and their associated 875 outpatient clinics offer the following services.

Hospital, outpatient medical, dental, pharmacy and prosthetic services
Domiciliary, nursing home, and community-based residential care
Sexual trauma counseling
Specialized health care for women veterans
Health and rehabilitation programs for homeless veterans
Readjustment counseling
Alcohol and drug dependency treatment
Medical evaluation for disorders associated with military service in the Gulf War, or Treatment for exposure to Agent Orange, radiation, and other environmental hazards
HISA grants
Other special benefits

The Department of Veterans Affairs provides three types of long term care services for veterans.

The first are health care benefits provided to veterans who have service-connected disabilities, who are receiving VA Pension or who are considered low income. These services include free medical care, possible free prescription drugs, orthotics and prosthetics, home renovation grants for disabilities, home care, assisted living, domiciliary care, nursing home care, and a possible host of other services or benefits.

The second benefit is state veterans homes. The majority of these homes offer nursing care but some may offer assisted living or domiciliary care. The Department of Veterans Affairs in conjunction with the states helps build and support state veterans homes. Money is provided to help with construction and a federal subsidy of $72.71 a day is provided for each veteran using state veterans nursing home services. These homes are generally available for most veterans and sometimes their spouses and in some cases for so-called "Goldstar parents." Veterans homes are run by the states, sometimes with the help of contract management. There may be waiting lists in some states.

The third benefit for veterans is disability income programs. The most familiar of these benefits is an income for service-connected disabled veterans called "Compensation." The least known of these is a program officially called "Pension" but popularly known as the "aid and attendance benefit."

• All active-duty veterans who served at least 90 days during a period of war are eligible for Pension and the additional income from aid and attendance or housebound allowances. A single surviving spouse of such a veteran is also eligible.
• All qualifying veteran applicants over the age of 65 are eligible for pension but must meet income and asset tests. Applicants under the age of 65 must in addition be totally disabled to qualify. Disability does not have to be service-connected.
• A surviving spouse can be any age and there is no need for disability.

The aid and attendance benefit can pay additional income to provide for the costs associated with home care, assisted living, nursing homes, adult day care and other unreimbursed medical expenses. It can also pay for a family member other than a spouse to be the care giver. The amount of payment varies with the type of care, recipient income and the marital status of the recipient. Here are some examples of how this benefit can help veterans.

Example #1
The National Care Planning Council receives many calls from family members of veterans, asking if there is any help available to them. One such call came from a woman who had been juggling her job and caring for her father in her home for over five years. She had just lost her job and with no income, did not know how she would keep her home or give her father the care he needed. She read an article that had been written by the National Care Planning Council and published in her local newspaper and called their phone number. The article mentioned that a member of the family -- not including a spouse -- can be paid through VA to provide care for a loved one at home who is either a war veteran or the surviving spouse of a war veteran. Her father is a war veteran. When told that she could get an additional $1,644 a month through her father by providing her father's care she was shocked. She was also extremely grateful and ended up sobbing into tears over the phone when she found out about the benefit and realized it would help her keep her home and her father may probably get a check for her retroactive previous care from VA worth tens of thousands of dollars.

Example #2
Another recent caller’s mother is 89 years old and has been in assisted living for four years. As a widow of a veteran she did not qualify for the Aid & Attendance Pension 4 years ago because her assets were too high. In the meantime she has been using up her assets along with her income to pay for the assisted living. The local veterans service office has not been helpful in getting this claim approved even though she had reached the allowable asset limit over two years ago. The family was considering putting her in a less desirable facility under Medicaid. The family knew this would be devastating for their mother. Her health was still good and she had many friends and comforts at the assisted living.

The National Care Planning Council directed the caller and his family to a more cooperative veterans service office that will submit the claim and likely get it approved retroactively so that this woman can get a check for roughly $40,000 worth of previous care costs for which she was not reimbursed. In addition, she will likely get the full benefit of $1,056 a month to help pay the cost of the assisted living where she is happy.

These types of claims require medical evidence in order to receive a rating for aid and attendance or housebound allowances. These ratings must be received or certain non-medical expenses associated with long term care are not deductible from income. Special rules also allow for deducting the annual anticipated cost of month-to-month long term care from household income in order to meet the income test. This special treatment requires special documentation and evidence. In addition, those households with substantial assets will be denied for a Pension income unless those assets are below a certain level determined for each case by VA. The personal residence, personal vehicles and personal property are exempted from this asset test. Finally, evidence must be supplied every year in January that the anticipated costs for the previous year were actually incurred or VA will likely demand for its money back.
The National Care Planning Council has compiled the necessary forms, rules and information about claims together in one book titled “How to Apply for the Veterans Aid & Attendance Pension Benefit.”

This book contains information about how a typical applicant receives a successful pension award. VA often tells callers to go ahead and fill out the application but generally provides no information on the special treatment of annualization of anticipated recurring medical costs. The claims form also contains no information on this important issue. One simply has to know how to do it. This crucial information can make the difference between a successful award and being declined. All necessary forms for filing a claim are in the book.

Veterans who have substantial assets may need to do some estate planning and realigning of assets to qualify. An expert in this area should be sought to help with the application in order to avoid lengthy delays in awarding a benefit or a possible denial of benefits. For a list of individuals or companies in your area who understand how to get this benefit go to http://www.longtermcarelink.net/ref_veterans_consultants.htm

To learn more about this benefit go to http://www.veteransaidbenefit.org/

Highlights and Trends from the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association 2009.

I have just returned from the national Association meeting on reverse mortgages. It certainly was a whirlwind of information, considering today’s economy and real estate environment. Here are a few highlights from the meeting:

1.    Trends in FHA, by law. FHA must have a positive cash flow. It cannot have a shortfall. Last year, the reverse mortgage program had $800 million shortfall and requested resources from Congress. It was denied. In order to sustain the program HUD cut the by 10%. A HUD official from the single-family housing program, commented if housing values continue to decline, HUD may have to further make changes ( reduce reverse mortgage proceeds further) to maintain the integrity of the program.

2.    There will be changes in reverse mortgage counseling protocol. HUD counselors will be required to assess household budgets. This will help the counselors gather information so that they can help borrowers decide whether a reverse mortgage makes sense for their financial situation.

3.    Financial materials will be required to be provided in advance to borrowers. Prior to their counseling. These materials may be provided may be provided by the lender. The borrower has chosen to work with.

4.    There will be no more on-demand reverse mortgage counseling sessions.

5.    Counselors will be required to make sure the clients fully understand how a reverse mortgage works. They will be asking a series of questions of the potential borrower during the counseling session.

6.    HUD is seriously working on developing what is called an ”HECM Mini”. This is a reverse mortgage for borrowers 62 years old and older similar to the current HECM products. The difference will be that the borrower will not be required to take the full amount of the proceeds. This is an option for seniors who do not need as much money of a reverse mortgage. This HECM Mini will be at least a year in the making.

7.    There recently was a legislative notice of non-concurrence. In regards to reverse mortgages and co-ops. This means there will be further delay on the mortgagee letter to allow reverse mortgages to be done on co-ops. When asked, Meg Burns, head of single-family housing at HUD about this delay, she gave the opinion that they would be able to resolve this issue by the first quarter of 2010.

8.    There is a new standardized good faith estimate that will be implemented in January 2010.

9.    There have been 650 reverse mortgage is used for purchase to date.

10.   Mortgage insurance is required on reverse mortgages. It has been long perceived as expensive loan due to the insurance. It was commented by Meg Burns had a single family housing at HUD that the current structure of mortgage insurance on reverse mortgages is the least expensive. There has been talk for years, about reducing the upfront premium and increasing the ongoing percentage a borrower pays in mortgage insurance on reverse mortgages. HUD is still considering a restructuring of the program. But it was reiterated that by law, FHA, must have a positive cash flow. A 1% up front premium will be considered.

11.   Demand is still growing on reverse mortgages.

12.   There is over 93% satisfaction rate amongst borrowers who have attained a reverse mortgage.

13.   FHA and the housing Commissioner are focusing on risk. The current housing market has created this focus.

14.   On a positive note, Ginnie Mae A Federal Corporation that insures mortgage-backed securities is ensuring reverse mortgage securities.

15.   There is an increased investor and Wall Street interest in reverse mortgage securities.

16.   Floating-rate products are attractive to banks.

17.   As the market expands, it will make way for the development of jumbo reverse mortgages. However, it was the general opinion that we are at least 12 to 18 months before the development of jumbo reverse mortgages. The property value will have to be $1 million or more in order to make sense in the utilization of a reverse mortgage.

18.   HUD is concerned about tax and insurance defaults amongst reverse mortgage recipients.

19.   Ethical advertising is a must in the reverse mortgage business. Anything less will not be tolerated. Association members are asked to help police the industry and keep our industry clean. The Association has published updated guidelines and requirements in the advertising of reverse mortgages.

20.   Condominium projects approved prior to October 1, 2008 will need to be recertified. They can be recertified by HUD or an approved lender. Every two years all projects will need to be preapproved. It takes a local HUD office, approximately 4 to 8 weeks, with proper documentation to approve a project. Associations subject to lawsuits may come up against some difficulties in getting approved. HUD recognizes nuisance lawsuits, however the projects subjected to these lawsuits will need to submit supporting documents, and will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

21.   The average borrower of reverse mortgage is 74 years old.

22.   The average borrower’s income is $2500 a month.

23.   The average borrower has a $1000 shortfall. Every month.

24.   When surveyed, three years later, reverse mortgage borrowers showed a 91% improved financial situation.

25.   Reverse mortgage program is 20 years old.

26.   30% of loans that are currently done are FHA. 8% of FHA loans are in default.

Financial Advisor Refers Client - Reverse Mortgage Testimonial

I originally tried to refinance my mortgage, but it was taking so long I was ready to give up when I heard about the reverse mortgage program.I attended a seminar and then called my financial advisor for his opinion of the program. He suggested that I talk to Angella and it was advice well taken. Angella was a delight to work with. She explained the whole process so that I had no questions or doubts. When the process started and we hit a few snags she was there to get me through them. I cannot imagine anyone doing a better job than Angella. With my act we live credit, I am now in the process of upgrading my condo. I can't wait to see the final results. Thank you, thank you. Angella.

S. P. Los Angeles, California

65+ Up Looking for Work - Unemployment rate for 45+ is 6.3%

We new that the baby boomers wre going to work longer. There are more than 1/3 more  workers  over 65+ in the job market than in 2001. There are more than one half a million workers 65 and older who want to work and are looking. Click Here to Read More.

New York Times interactive graphic which calculates unemployment rates by age. 6.3 % for those 45+ http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/11/06/business/economy/unemployment-lines.html

New York Times reports that there are more American's 65+ in the job market. Nearly 1/2 million 65+ workers who want to work are looking http://ping.fm/DOzqf