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"When one door of happiness closes, another opens..." ~Helen Keller
Today's Community Review
October 27, 2022
Reynolds Lake Oconee, Greensboro, Georgia
Along the shores of pretty Lake Oconee in northern Georgia, rambling Reynolds Lake Oconee has four marinas, 374 miles of shoreline, six golf courses, 16 tennis courts, nature trails and home prices in a wide range. Many of its residents are baby boomers and empty nesters.
More Communities
Wellington at Seven Hills, Spring Hill, Florida
North of Tampa in west central Florida, Wellington at Seven Hills is an established, lushly landscaped 55+ community with single family homes, attached homes, a beautiful clubhouse, an arts studio, a fitness center, an outdoor swimming pool, miles of trails, an active activity calendar and more.
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Wild Wing, Conway, South Carolina
Conway is near Myrtle Beach on the northern South Carolina coast and is the setting for Wild Wing, an all ages community that markets to baby boomers. Single family homes are for sale, and amenities include golf courses, an owners' club, lakes and more.
In beautiful southwestern Oregon, Roseburg is the site of Littlebrook, a pretty 55+ manufactured home community at the end an old riverside country road. Homes look site-built and come in a variety of colors. Residents enjoy a clubhouse, and RV parking is available.
Imperial Cove, Clearwater, Florida
Overlooking Tampa Bay in western Florida, Imperial Cove is a gated, 55+ condominium and villa community with water views, a clubhouse, a heated pool, a cove, a dock, a fishing pier and occasional manatees.
Kissing Tree, San Marcos, Texas
San Marcos is in the Texas Hill Country and is the site of Kissing Tree, a large 55+ single family home community with a golf course, a putting green, a clubhouse, a swimming pool, a restaurant, a bar and a variety of architectural styles.
Centennial Station, Warminster, Pennsylvania
Warminster is in scenic Bucks County, Pennsylania and is the setting for Centennial Station, an established 55+ community with condominiums, an indoor swimming pool, two amenity centers, a restaurant and more.
Cecil Pines, Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is on the northeastern Florida coast and is the location of Cecil Pines, a quiet, gated 55+ community on the site of an old air base. Single family homes and duplexes are for lease, and tall, moss-draped trees pepper the grounds.
Garden Park at Daybreak, South Jordan, Utah
South Jordan is a nice, sunny city about 20 miles south of Salt Lake in northern Utah and is the site of Garden Park at Daybreak, a handsome 55+ neighborhood within a larger development. Homes come in many styles, and amenities include a spacious clubhouse, a swimming pool, gardens and more.
Ocean Ridge Plantation, Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina
In the little coastal town of Ocean Isle Beach, Ocean Ridge Plantation is a wooded, gated community with a variety of home styles, five golf courses, a lovely clubhouse, a private beach club and more.
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Retiring with a Mortgage?
Most financial advisors will tell you to pay down your mortgage before you retire. The reason for this is that since your income is most likely to decline during retirement, it makes sense that your monthly expenses also decline.
Yet more retirees are carrying mortgages than ever before. This is because people are buying houses later in life and then refinacing to tap into their equity, which usually extends the lenghth of a loan.
Nearly 50% of people age 65 to 79 have a mortgage, with a median balance of $77,000. Twenty-five percent of people age 80 or better also carry mortgage.
There are two potential downsides to carrying mortgage debt during retirement. One, if you find that you can't make your payments and your home is foreclosed, then you have less time to recover from the loss.
Two, if you have to pull from your retirement accounts to make your mortgage payment, that can leave you short on cash if an emergency arises. And it is not as easy at age 70 to pick up a job to help with mortgage payments as it is at age 35. Retirement account withdrawls can also trigger more taxes.
If you are going to have mortgage payments during retirement and are worried about them stretching you too thin, then you might consider refinancing the debt with a 30 year loan before you retire. Doing so can get your monthly payments down to a manageable level.
You might also consider a reverse mortgage if you have a good amount of equity in your home. This type of loan lets you stay in your home without a monthly payment and lets you tap into your equity, providing you with a lump sum payment or monthly cash payments.
If you are retiring with a mortgage, you are not alone. But not having one or refinancing the debt to lower your payments can make retirement a little easier.
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How to Qualify for a Reverse Mortgage
All borrowers must be at least 62 years old. The older you are, the more funds you can receive from a reverse mortgage.
You must live in your home as your primary residence for the length of the reverse mortgage. You must own your home outright or have at least 50% equity.
You must meet with a HUD-approved reverse mortgage counselor prior to applying for a reverse mortgage to learn exactly how a reverse mortgage works and how much it costs (fees, etc.). The counseling session is to ensure that the borrow completely understands how a reverse mortgage works.
Single family homes, manufactured homes built after 1976, condominiums that are FHA-approved and town homes are all eligible for a reverse mortgage.
You must show the financial ability to meet your loan obligations, including paying property taxes, insurance and HOA fees if applicable. You must also maintain the home.
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Best Mortgage Lenders
Homeowners approaching retirement often have enough equity to sell their current home and buy a less expensive one outright. Some people, though, want to keep the cash from their home sale and finance a new home, while others might need a small or short-term mortgage to cover the gap between their available cash and a home's purchase price. If you do need a mortgage, it is important to choose the right one. Here are three of the best lenders.
Better Mortgage - According to Nerd Wallet, this mortgage company charges no commission fees and has no application, underwriting or origination fees. They also close most loans within 21 days, two times faster than the national average.
Quicken Loans - This mortgage company has a five star rating in the 2019 J.D. Power U.S. Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study and an A+ rating with the BBB. Quicken Loans has processed more than two million mortgages.
Vylla Loan - This mortgage lender has multiple loan programs for people with less than steller credit and considers alternative credit data, such as bank statements and rent payments.
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