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"There is a child in every one of us, not always accompanied by an adult." ~Robert Brault
Today's Community Review
November 6, 2023
Ford's Colony, Williamsburg, Virginia
Charming Williamsburg is in southeastern Virginia and is the site of Ford's Colony, a wooded community with single family homes and attached homes in a variety of architectural styles. Amenities include swimming pools, tennis courts, nature trails, RV storage and much more.
More Communities
Albemarle, Hertford, North Carolina
Hertford is in northeastern North Carolina and is the site of Albemarle Plantation, a waterfront community with a golf course, a marina, a clubhouse and a good selection of home styles.
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South of Phoenix in southern Arizona, Maricopa is the site of Province, a gated 55+ resort-like community with single family homes, a bounty of amenities, 50 acres of water, acres of nicely landscaped grounds and more.
Alligator Park, Punta Gorda, Florida
On Florida's Gulf Coast, Punta Gorda is the site of Alligator Park, a low key 55+ cooperative with low maintenance mobile/manufactured/park model homes, a fishing and boating lake, a heated swimming pool, a chapel, a bounty of resident activities and more.
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.
Heritage Pines, Hudson, Florida
Hudson is on Florida's Gulf Coast and is the location of Heritage Pines, a gated 55+ community with pastel-colored homes, a golf course, conservation areas, a bounty of clubs, an activities director and more.
Eagle's Pointe, Bluffton, South Carolina
On the South Carolina coast, Bluffton is the site of Eagle's Pointe, a pretty community surrounded by golf course fairways and woods. Single family homes are for sale, and residents enjoy a clubhouse, tennis courts, a small lake and more.
Clearwater Point, Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is on Florida's mid-Gulf Coast and is the site of Clearwater Point, a partly 55+ condominium community nearly surrounded by the Intracoastal Waterway and the Gulf of Mexico. Amenities include swimming pools, tennis courts, a hot tub and a private beach.
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.
Sunflower, Fort Collins, Colorado
At the base of the Rocky Mountains in north central Colorado, thriving Fort Collins is the setting for Sunflower, an attractive 55+ modular home community with a clubhouse, a putting green, pickleball courts, RV storage, event gatherings and more.
Westwind RV and Golf Resort, Yuma, Arizona
Yuma is in southern Arizona and is the setting for Westwind RV and Golf Resort, an award-winning 55+ community with a nine hole golf course, a large swimming pool, a long list of events/activities, park models 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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