When a "Secure" Retirement Goes Astray

When we met Elizabeth, she should have been enjoying a worry-free retirement. After a long career with Riverside County (CA), she had social security and a comfortable pension, and her retirement home in Sun City, California, was mortgage-free. Her future looked bright.

But life threw her a series of brutal curveballs.

First, she fought and won a courageous battle against Stage 4 breast cancer. But the victory came at a cost—to cover her expenses during recovery, she had to run up significant credit card balances. Then, trying to manage it all on a fixed income, her property taxes became delinquent, forcing her into a stressful payment plan.

The final straw? On a sweltering Southern California summer day, her central air unit gave out. She found herself dragging a portable unit from room to room, just to stay cool.

Suddenly, Elizabeth had too much month left at the end of her money. The question that kept her up at night was a terrifying one: "After all this, will I lose my home?"

The Advice That Almost Cost Her Everything

A reverse mortgage seemed like the perfect solution to get her retirement back on track. But as soon as she mentioned it, the advice from her well-meaning friends and family poured in.

"Don't do it, Elizabeth! The bank will own your home!"

It's a common fear, often passed down from stories about loans from a different era. But here’s the question they weren't asking: "Is that advice based on today's facts, or yesterday's fiction?"

Paraphrasing Robert Burns again: The best advice from friends and family can sometimes lead you astray.

Choosing Facts Over Fear

Thankfully, Elizabeth chose to trust the facts she learned from us. We explained that the reverse mortgages of today come with an FHA-insured, written guarantee of her ownership rights. She would own her home, just as she always had, as long as she lived in it and paid her property taxes and homeowner’s insurance.

To make that even more secure, we showed her how a special set-aside account could be created from the loan proceeds to handle those bills for her automatically, ensuring she'd never have to worry about falling behind again.

Had Elizabeth followed the advice of her family, her story would have had a very different ending. She would likely be facing the heartbreaking choice of selling the home she loves.

Instead, this is her new reality:

She's living in the home she loves

All her high-interest credit cards have zero balances.

A brand-new HVAC unit keeps her home cool and comfortable.

She is back on track. Her reverse mortgage will be paid when she leaves the property for the last time, and she is finally living out her retirement with the security she earned.

Your Retirement is Your Own

Your friends and family love you, but they aren't always experts. Your retirement plan shouldn't be guided by fear or outdated information. The final question is simple: Are you ready to get the real facts about your situation?

If you're ready to explore a solution that can put your retirement back on track, the next step is a simple, no-pressure conversation.