You have to be 62 years of age or older.
The home must be your primary home.
There has to be sufficient equity to qualify, enough equity to pay off any outstanding debts like mortgages or liens.
The older you are, the more equity you have in your home, the better your financial assessment the more funds will be available to you.
There are many ways that a reverse mortgage can benefit your retirement and most media do not cover these pros. One way is to set up a LOC (line of credit) and this line of credit will grow over time (so the reverse mortgage will grow your retirement income). No other program has that feature by leveraging the homes equity.
Questions to ask yourself before committing to a reverse mortgage.
Ultimately the decision should be based on your retirement goals. Sit down with your family and financial advisers to discuss your options. For many getting a reverse mortgage means eliminating the mortgage payment they currently have. It’s not only money that matters, but the ability to reduce stress, or have a better retirement should be non quantitative factors you think about.