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"This morning, the sun endures past dawn. I realise that it is August: the summer's last stand." ~Sara Baume
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Today's Community Review
August 1, 2022
Port Belleair, Belleair Bluffs, Florida
Across from Tampa and about a mile from white sand Gulf Coast beaches, Port Belleair is an established 55+ condo community with a heated pool, a community center and water views.
More Communities
Surfside Beach Club, Surfside Beach, South Carolina
Surfside Beach is a mellow town on the northern South Carolina coast and is the site of Surfside Beach Club, a gated community popular with baby boomers. It has a nice clubhouse, a plethora of activities and single family homes, many of which back to water.
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Country Place, Pearland, Texas
Outside of Houston, near the Texas Gulf Coast, Pearland is the location of Country Place, a soothing, settled 55+ community with an 18 hole golf course, a carriage house clubhouse, single family homes and town homes.
The Colony, Murrieta, California
Outside of San Diego in sunny Southern California, Murrieta is the site of The Colony, a large, settled 55+ community with Mediterranean-style homes, an 18 hole golf course, a nice clubhouse, walking trails, lakes, a good menu of events, groups and activities and more.
Little Manatee Springs, Wimauma, Florida
Wimauma is about 20 miles inland from Florida's Gulf Coast and is the setting for Little Manatee Springs, a pretty 55+ manufactured home community nearly surrounded by Little Manatee River State Park. It has gated access, palm trees, spring-fed lakes, a nine hole golf course, covered RV parking, nature trails and more.
Laurel Island Plantation, Kingsland, Georgia
Kingsland is about 10 miles inland from the Cumberland Island National Seashore in southeastern Georgia and is the site of Laurel Island Plantation, a gated community with attached homes, single family homes, an 18 hole golf course, amenity centers, retail centers, preserve views, fairway views and more.
Lake Griffin Harbor, Leesburg, Florida
In Florida's Lake Country, Leesburg is the site of Lake Griffin Harbor, a casual, lakeside 55+ manufactured home community with a marina, a swimming pool, a conservation area, planned events and more.
Alegria, Bernalillo, New Mexico
Bernalillo is in rugged northern New Mexico and is the setting for Alegria, a handsome, gated 55+ community with single family homes, a putting green, a clubhouse, two swimming pools, neighborhood activities, pretty views, lots of sunshine and more.
Friendly Valley, Santa Clarita, California
Outside of Los Angeles in Southern California, Friendly Valley is a settled, gated 55+ community with condos, town homes, single family homes, two golf courses, RV parking, nicely manicured grounds, a plethora of activities 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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