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"We need to internalize this idea of excellence. Not many folks spend a lot of time trying to be excellent." ~Barack Obama
Today's Community Review
August 23, 2023
Sunshine Country Club Estates, Harlingen, Texas
Deep in the Rio Greande Valley in South Texas, Harlingen is the setting for Sunshine Country Club Estates, a casual 55+ community with mobile/manufactured homes, site-built homes, a clubhouse, a 9-hole golf course, RV parking, planned activities and more.
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Mission Royale, Casa Grande, Arizona
In southern Arizona, Casa Grande is the site of Mission Royale, a 55+ neighborhood within a larger, all ages development. Single story, single family homes are for sale, and residents enjoy resort-style swimming pools, a beautiful clubhouse, a restaurant, an 18 hole golf course, fairway views and more.
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Aberdeen Golf and Country Club, Boynton Beach, Florida
Along the southeastern Florida coast, Boynton Beach is the setting for Aberdeen Golf and Country Club, a country club community with a handful of 55+ neighborhoods. Amenities include a championship golf course, a 40,000 square foot clubhouse, an aquatics center and more. Homes sit along canals.
Sun City Center, Sun City Center, Florida
Outside of Tampa in west central Florida, Sun City Center is a large, established 55+ community with single family homes, town homes, condominiums, five clubhouses, four golf courses, swimming pools, tennis courts, more than 200 activity groups and much more. Oceanfront beaches are about 35 miles away.
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.
Spring Forest, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina
Along the northern South Carolina coast, charming Murrells Inlet is the site of Spring Forest, a wooded 55+ community with single family homes, nearly all of which back to a shallow canal or forested area. Amenities include a nice clubhouse, a swimming pool, RV parking and a good menu of social events. HOA fees are reasonable, too.
Knollwood Village, Southern Pines, North Carolina
Southern Pines is in south central North Carolina and is the setting for Knollwood Village, a wooded community with condominiums, town homes and single family homes. Residents enjoy a nine hole golf course and a quiet atmosphere.
Timber Pines, Spring Hill, Florida
Near Florida's central Gulf Coast, Spring Hill is home to Timber Pines, a large, established 55+ community with town homes, single family homes, four golf courses, swimming pools, a performing arts center and a wide selection of clubs and activities.
Bonterra at Cross Creek Ranch, Fulshear, Texas
Just outside of Houston in southern Texas, Fulshear is the site of Bonterra at Cross Creek Ranch, a 55+ enclave inside of a larger development. Single level homes are for sale, and amenities include a clubhouse, a lagoon-style pool and walking/biking trails.
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.
Dolce Vida, Apache Junction, Arizona
Apache Junction is in southern Arizona and is the location of Dolce Vida, an attractive 55+ manufactured home community with properties that look site built. Residents enjoy a clubhouse, a bounty of planned events and mountain views.
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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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