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"Don't put off your happy life." ~Unknown
Today's Community Reviews
March 30, 2023
Century Village at West Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach is in southeastern Florida and is the setting for Century Village, a large 55+ community with condominiums, swimming pools, tennis courts, a theater, a community bus, an island clubhouse and more. Oceanfront beaches are about two miles away.
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Mountain Meadows, Ashland, Oregon
Picturesque Ashland, home to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, is in southwestern Oregon and is the setting for Mountain Meadows, an established, leafy 55+ community with a variety of housing options. Residents enjoy pretty views, plenty of social events, a neighborhood garden and more
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Ardiente, North Las Vegas, Nevada
North Las Vegas is in southern Nevada and the location of Ardiente, a gated 55+ community with attractive single level homes, a beautiful clubhouse, a putting green, an activities director and more.
Bay Island, South Pasadena, Florida
On Florida's Gulf Coast, South Pasadena is the site of Bay Island, a casual, settled 55+ waterfront community with condominiums, a marina, swimming pools, a fishing dock, tennis courts and pretty views.
Compass Pointe, Leland, North Carolina
Near the North Carolina coast, Leland is the site of Compass Pointe, a beautiful age-targeted, resort-style community with single family homes, an amenity center, 45 holes of golf, two swimming pools, a lazy river and more.
Bishop's Landing, Millville, Delaware
Millville is just four miles from Bethany Beach in southeastern Delaware and is the location of Bishop's Landing, a single family home and attached home community marketed to families, empty nesters and retirees. Amenities include a nice clubhouse, an Olympic-size pool, a fishing pier, a dog park and more.
Outside of Dallas/Fort Worth, Denton is the site of Robson Ranch, a large, handsome 55+ community with single family homes, attached homes, a sports club, a neighborhood garden, a golf course, a dog park and more.
Turkey Creek Forest, Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is in northern Florida and is the site of Turkey Creek Forest, a modest, wooded 55+ single family home community with a solar heated swimming pool, shaded tennis courts, a sense of privacy and a very reasonable HOA fee.
Woodside Plantation, Aiken, South Carolina
Tucked in western South Carolina, Aiken is the site of Woodside Plantation, a community popular with baby boomers. It has golf courses, equestrian trails, a wine cellar, a resort-style pool, an adjacent nature preserve, a plethora of social groups and a wide range of prices.
Quail Estates West, Las Vegas, Nevada
Located in southern Nevada, Las Vegas is the site of Quail Estates West, a quiet, established 55+ condominium community with a gated entrance, a clubhouse, a spa and a swimming pool. The Strip is about seven minutes away.
Cinnamon Cove, Ft. Myers, Florida
On the southwestern Florida coast, Ft. Myers is the site of Cinnamon Cove, a lush, gated community with condominiums, town homes, single family homes, three lakes, four swimming pools, a spa, a plethora of activity groups and more.
Pelican Pointe, Elizabeth City, North Carolina
On the northern North Carolina coast, Elizabeth City is the site of Pelican Pointe, a waterfront community popular with baby boomers and retirees. Single family homes and town homes are for sale, and amenities include a clubhouse, a community dock, a lake, a flower garden, walking paths and direct river access.
Sunflower - Continental Ranch, Marana, Arizona
Outside of Tucson in southern Arizona, Marana is the site of Sunflower, an established 55+ community within the gates of Continental Ranch. Single level, Mediterranean-style homes are for sale, and amenities include a village center, tennis courts, a putting green, walking trails and a packed social events calendar.
IslandWalk at the West Villages, Venice, Florida
On the southwestern Florida coast, Venice is the location of IslandWalk, an all ages community with Mediterranean-style single story homes, an elegant entryway, lush landscaping and a beautiful resort-style swimming pool.
Leisure World, Seal Beach, California
Seal Beach is on the Southern California coast and is the site of Leisure World, a large, established 55+ community with attached homes, a 2,500-seat amphitheater, a health care center, six clubhouses, a golf course, a ceramics studio, a woodworking studio, dozens of clubs and activities, shuttle services 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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