NCOA Now One of Five Reverse Mortgage Counseling Intermediaries
The NCOA (National Council on Aging) has been officially named by the HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development) as one of the five national counseling agencies for American seniors interested in taking up a reverse mortgage loan.
A reverse mortgage is a type of loan taken by senior home owners/borrowers aged 62 and above by converting a portion of their owned home equity into cash while continuing to live in the same home for as long as they want. Any senior home owner wanting to take a reverse mortgage is first needed to obtain counseling from an approved agency, before they take up this kind of loan.
NCOA’s CEO, James Firman, said that in this tough economic climate, many senior home-owning Americans are looking to cash in on their home values. NCOA offers telephone counseling to nationwide clients through a Counseling Service Network. The toll-free number for the NCOA nationwide network is 800-510-0301. Senior home owners can call this number to schedule a counseling session to know about the features and costs of taking a reverse mortgage. The fee for reverse mortgage counseling is $125 at present. NCOA waives the fee for seniors facing financial problems like a foreclosure, and for seniors with modest incomes (under $20000-30000 as applicable).
In the year 2007, about 82% of the households with people age 65 to 74 were home owners, and almost 78% of this figure comprised of people aged 75 and above. The proportion of senior homeowners with a home loan grew to 32% in 2008.
The NCOA is a not for profit service organization headquartered in Washington, DC. NCOA works with thousands of organizations across the USA to help seniors find benefits and jobs, improve health and live independently. More information about the NCOA is available at www.ncoa.org.
