The value of retirement accounts dropped over the last few years, there were many that lost jobs and many took jobs paying much less, the cost of things like gas, heating fuel, actually there is an endless list of reasons.
Margaret and Manny came to me for a reverse mortgage, they were 69 and 73 respectively. They were referred by their daughter, as I had done a couple of different mortgages over the last 10 years. They owned a modest home that was presently valued at $110,000, so a reverse mortgage would have gotten them about $68,000. The problem, they owed $90,000.
At one point during the conversation, Manny turned to his wife and apologized for not earning enough money for them to retire. Maggie turned to her husband and said, “our lives are very good, I could not ever want for more.” He just said, “Thank you, I love you.” OMG, they were very special people.
This article has suggestions that you can do now to make sure retirement is comfortable:
How the Recession Has Changed Retirement Planning
By: Roger Rousseaux
