[USER]

Has anyone here successfully retired while still having a mortgage? Are reverse mortgages worth it?

I will be 60 next year and would like to start planning for retirement in the next 5 years. On track with savings and projected pension, but not with a mortgage. About 145k left.

Already paying weekly and paying a little extra each week to try to knock it down. Selling is not an option, renting out a room not an option.

Thanks..

[Karen]

Reverse mortgages are the worst. Especially if you have heirs. When the owners die, the bank then becomes the owner which leaves your heirs with no house or equity. If you cannot live within your means get a smaller home. Senior places by and large are cheaper to buy.

I think reverse mortgages should be illegal.

[Lisa]

Do you have a low interest rate on your mortgage? If so and you have other investments that make more than that interest rate think of it as your investments making your house payment. I’m in the same boat. Thought about paying off my mortgage before retiring but at 2.75% mortgage it doesn’t make sense cuz I can beat that with CD’s and some savings accounts.

Good luck!

You can check also: Can someone explain how mortgage lenders “wrap up your debt at closing”?

[Tina]

I would not do a reverse mortgage my friend’s grandparents did this and never told there kids and was surprised that they had hardly no money left after they sold the house.

[Debbie]

I agree with making half your payment every two weeks. It does help but it won’t be fast.

[DeDe]

Look at your amortization schedule and make the principal payments along with your reg payment if you can. Another option pay every two weeks.

[Denise]

We are retired with a mortgage, before retiring I ran what our expected income would be. After figuring out that we could still eat .. we both retired. We’re fine, we really have more money now then we had when we were both working. I’m not saying that it wouldn’t be nice without a mortgage, it’ll be paid off in 21 months! I do pay an extra $100.00 per month towards the principal.

[Michelle]

Do not do a reverse mortgage. My Nana did without our knowledge. We came out with nothing for funeral expenses etc (we used our bill money to pay for it initially) we had really wanted to keep the home top. But it wasn’t possible.

[Kristie]

Please make absolutely sure that the extra you are paying is being applied to principle.

If it’s not , then it’s not cutting the amount of interest accruing nearly as quickly as if it is applied to principle.

Also, I second the idea of decluttering & selling unneeded items to throw extra on principle.

Also, check out: I’m currently trying to compose a plan to pay our mortgage off quicker

[Margie]

Find out how much your monthly pension amount will be. Then draw up your budget, with h all the payments you would have to make. Can you afford the mortgage payment in retirement?

If not, what can you start selling now, to apply to the mortgage? Can your negotiate lower payments in anything else, such as insurance (but not compromising your cover) and reallocate your savings to mortgage payments.

[Lori]

I don’t have personal experience with a reverse mortgage but I won’t consider one. Basically, you never own you’re home. All it does is ease up payments. If you are now paying extra on your mortgage, perhaps if you needed more funds in retirement, you would just reduce your mortgage payments to paying the minimum required. That way you still have equity in your home, and when you decide to sell, you’ll have the equity that you have built.

[Karen]

Since your already making payments weekly I would find extra ways to make money , pet sit , house sit , sell items on marketplace and depending on property you can rent out a parking spot to park a trailer etc.

[Author]

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