A reverse mortgage could be an ideal way for your parents to benefit from the wise investment they made in real estate perhaps decades ago. If you are the son or daughter of a senior who is age 62 or older, you should understand the facts about reverse mortgages.

• Get money without moving. A reverse mortgage can help your parent(s) create a new source of tax-free* money without having to sell their home. In fact, they can stay in the home they love for as long as they'd like.
  
  
• Financial independence. A reverse mortgage allows seniors to tap into money they've earned in the form of home equity, and avoid having to depend on relatives for financial assistance.
  
  
• Keep title to the house. Your parents retain full title to their home and have no risk of losing the home to the lender. And no matter what happens to the housing market, your parents can never owe more than the value of their home when it is sold.



• Proven safe. Over 150,000 Americans have already benefited from reverse mortgages. The fact is that HECM reverse mortgages are government-protected loans and many safeguards are in place to protect seniors from unethical lending practices.



• Repayment options. If your last-remaining parent passes away while living in the home, you, as the heir(s), simply pay off the reverse mortgage principal plus accrued interest. If you-or a sibling or other relative-want to keep the home in the family, you can take out a new traditional mortgage or use other assets to pay for it. If no one in the family is interested in keeping the home, it can be sold to repay the loan. Any money left over goes to the estate to be shared according to your parents' last wishes.