Finance of America Reverse Review

Item: Finance of America Reverse
Rating: 4.4
Author: ConsumersAdvocate

ConsumersAdvocate.org Rating: 4.4 / 5 (Excellent)

80 Customer Comments & Reviews - see all comments

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Finance of America Reverse is a direct lender focused solely on reverse mortgages. Founded in 2003, FAR operates in 50 states and is based in Oklahoma.

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Finance of America Reverse is the reverse mortgage arm of Finance of America. Finance of America is recognized as one of premier mortgage lenders in the United States and has a substantial lending history of nearly 20 years in business.

Most Flexible Proprietary Loan

Among lenders currently offering proprietary reverse mortgages, Finance of America Reverse stands out for a number of reasons. For starters, its proprietary loan, the HomeSafe® reverse mortgage, is more a suite of tools than a single, one-size-fits-all type of loan.

There are three versions of the HomeSafe® proprietary loan: HomeSafe Standard, For Purchase, and Select. The biggest difference between them is how funds are disbursed to borrowers. HomeSafe Standard offers single, lump sum payments; and HomeSafe Select is an adjustable-rate option that functions as a line of credit. No other proprietary reverse mortgage shows this much versatility in terms of payment options.

Requirements for FAR’s HomeSafe® products are quite reasonable. There is no minimum property value and non-borrowing spouses are protected under specific circumstances.

HomeSafe® is also the proprietary reverse mortgage with the greatest regional availability in the market. HomeSafe Standard loans are available in a total of 26 states (the average is around 15), HomeSafe Select is available in the following states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Utah. FAR has expressed its desire to keep adding states to this list, with some already on the way.

Widest Selection of Products

We found that Finance of America Reverse had one of the largest product portfolios in the industry, with six different available options: HomeSafe®, HECM, Reverse for Purchase (H4P), Refinancing, and Silvernest. Most reverse mortgage companies only offer FHA-insured loans, with only a few lenders having a proprietary option.

FAR’s Refinancing options are unique in the industry. The latter is an HECM-to-HECM refinancing program that works similarly to regular loan refinancing. The program can help those whose homes have significantly appreciated in value, who want to take advantage of lower rates, and who want to add another borrower to the loan—a spouse, for example.

Finally, FAR borrowers have another option to consider thanks to the company’s partnership with Silvernest. A room and house-sharing service, Silvernest matches users with potential housemates in their area for a fee. It does this via detailed profile analysis and can provide aging homeowners with extra income and companionship. Those with an active FAR loan are provided with a one-year subscription and have the cost of matching with a housemate covered.

Top-Notch Online Experience

Finance of America Reverse’s website is straightforward and offers a good amount of learning resources, including a handy loan calculator and retirement personality quiz.

Information on FAR is easy to access, with one tab dedicated to exploring the options available through the lender, and another focused on how to be ready for retirement. FAR also has an articles and news section, where users can find numerous writeups not only about retirement products, but also about retirement living as whole. The company’s retirement personality quiz can also help pinpoint the right product for a consumer depending on what their outlook on retirement is.

FAR’s reverse mortgage calculator is simple but can provide a good projection of how one’s equity will translate into funds. After inputting just four values—age, home value, mortgage balance, and state of residence—users are redirected to a pie chart showing the total amount of proceeds, mortgage payoff, proceeds available after paying off your mortgage, and remaining equity. A second chart will appear with the same fields but based on a HomeSafe® loan, for qualifying homes in states where it’s available.

Finance of America Reverse LLC NMLS ID # 2285 (www.nmls.consumeraccess.org)

What We’re Hearing From Our Readers

Customer Comments

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Armenta S

5/8/2018

I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the process was. A little put off by the almost microscopic look at my finances, however, the agent I worked with (Toby Beers) was great. Very considerate and helpful. Altogether a good experience.

5 People found this helpful.

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Javiera M

Official Response

Digital Marketing Manager of Finance of America Reverse

Armenta, We are happy that you chose to work with Finance of America Reverse and that everything went as smoothly as possible during the process. Reverse mortgages have many regulations in place to make sure that all parties (including the borrower) are protected, which is why we request information. Pleased to hear that Toby gave you such excellent customer service. Feel free to contact us with additional questions anytime. Thank you, FAR

Carol G

5/6/2020

Having been a sales professional in a related industry and have dealt with hundreds of others as a client myself, it was a pleasure to work with Toby Beers. Toby was the most efficient mortgage professional I have ever dealt with and would highly recommend him to anyone considering a reverse mortgage. He understands the complexities of a reverse mortgage, responds in a timely manner and is a good listener. And understands customer service completely. There simply needs to be more Toby Beers working with clients in most any industry - he sets the standard of my firm belief in "The Golden Rule", when it comes to work or personal dealings in life.

4 People found this helpful.

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Anna M

5/8/2019

Our agent, Carol Lynne Giery, was excellent. She handled our transaction in a very professional but personal manner. We are glad that we chose Finance of America Reverse for our reverse mortgage.

4 People found this helpful.

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Patricia F

4/7/2018

Everyone was very helpful and curtious. And they did everything they said they would do. We would recommend Finance America to anyone we know .

4 People found this helpful.

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Javiera M

Official Response

Digital Marketing Manager of Finance of America Reverse

Patricia, We appreciate the opportunity to help guide you through the process and happy to hear that you are satisfied with your reverse mortgage from Finance of America Reverse. Thank you for working with Finance of America Reverse and for your valuable feedback. FAR

Marcy K

4/6/2018

The Reverse Mortgage application through to the conclusion was very complete and handled excellently by Amy Cecil. I appreciated her attention to detail and friendly attitude. I am sure we'll stay in touch.

4 People found this helpful.

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Javiera M

Official Response

Digital Marketing Manager of Finance of America Reverse

Marcy, We appreciate the opportunity to help guide you through the process and glad to hear that Amy was able to help you understand all of the details of a reverse mortgage. Feel free to contact us with additional questions anytime. Thank you for your business and feedback. FAR

Lyn L

5/13/2021

So disappointed in this process! We provided all the documents requested by our loan specialist very early in the process. When the loan was turned over to underwriting, they continued to request additional documents, sometimes duplicate documents, and our loan closing was delayed by a week. It would seem that these documents could have been requested before turning over to underwriting in order to save time. We spent an additional $2000 in moving costs, hotels and meals because of the delay. I will not recommend Finance of America Reverse.

3 People found this helpful.

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Christine W

Official Response

Reputation Management Specialist of Finance of America Reverse

Thank you for taking the time to submit your review. We understand and empathize in your frustration, and unfortunately the delays were caused by the title company who took longer than expected to send us the report and your approval. We are happy to know your loan is now funded and that you are settled into your home. We value our relationship with our customers, so please reach out if there is anything further we can do for you and your family.

Larry M

5/3/2021

This is our second reverse mortgage w/FAR and as with our original (reverse) we are very happy to continue our relationship with an outstanding company. From our first conversation with DAVID MOUNT (San Diego office) my wife & I felt right at home discussing every detail. We really appreciate all the work he did for us. He was always prompt, answered all our questions and was very detailed. He is an outstanding credit to your company. If we have any further questions we will feel very good giving David Mount a call. We trust that you will recognize him as an outstanding employee for your company.

3 People found this helpful.

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Carolyn W

Official Response

Customer Representative of Finance of America Reverse

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are delighted that our team was able to build trust and make you feel supported along your second journey. Finance of America is lucky to have David and are honored to have been able to work together again. Please feel free to reach out for anything you need.

augusttarasi

7/28/2020

Since this was our first foray into the reverse mortgage arena, I can't honestly rate FAR as a reverse mortgage company other than to say they did what they said they would do. I can, however, rate our account rep, Scott Zmikly. Scott was responsive, patient, anxious to answer all our questions and calmly reassured us when we expressed frustration with all the hoops through which we had to jump. "There is one more thing" was the phrase we grew to detest, but Scott's unflappable demeanor saved the day for both FAR and us. We will be happy to recommend Scott, and by extension, FAR to anyone seeking to enter the reverse mortgage realm.

3 People found this helpful.

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bruce.e.lawrence

4/14/2020

Katie May was very helpful. She gave good advice and attempted to refute a way too low estimate on my house, which was rejected. I had to take the reverse mortgage due to the falling stock market to preserve my 401K.

3 People found this helpful.

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Alfred l

5/11/2018

I was the go between in obtaining a reverse mortgage for my elderly mother for some repairs on her home.the person that helped us was katie may. She was excellent; she kept me informed of the process and was very kind and made us feel like she really had our best interest at heart. Thank you for helping my mother.

3 People found this helpful.

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Javiera M

Official Response

Digital Marketing Manager of Finance of America Reverse

Alfred, That is great that you and your mother see the value a reverse mortgage could possibly provide to people in retirement. We work hard to find the best people to provide a great experience for our customers. We are pleased to hear that Katie was able to help guide you through the process. We appreciate you and your mother choosing to work with Finance of America Reverse and for your feedback. Feel free to contact us with additional questions. FAR

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