On the second day after returning to work this summer as a paraeducator for special-needs high school students, Nancy K. fractured her knee, sidelining her in her Ontario, Calif., home. For approximately the next four months, the time and energy she normally spent pouring into her students and creating a positive learning environment for them went toward thinking about her own future.
At 68, Nancy had a lot to ponder. It was 13 years since having lost her husband, with whom she had built a wonderful marriage and a family over 35 years. Together they raised a son and daughter, while working hard over the decades, he as a machinist and Nancy in special education. There was time for fun, of course. Nancy is quite the fisherman, once having hooked a 30-pound King Salmon.
But in examining her life as a widow, she kept coming back to one question: Why was she still working when so many of her friends were retired, including those with whom she had taken short trips to Oregon and the Grand Canyon? She didn’t have to look far for the answer. It was making her monthly mortgage payments that kept her working.
“I felt as if I was never going to be able to retire,” Nancy said. “I felt stuck.”
Nancy had known about reverse mortgages as a possible solution to put more cash in her pocket each month. She had seen the AAG commercials with Tom Selleck, but until her mishap, she never took or had the time to investigate them further. They were always on the back burner.
But her forced recuperation finally gave her time to heal not only her body, but her financial situation. There was a convergence of economic forces at work as well. Interest rates were low and home equity had never been higher.
There was more positive reinforcement on the way. Nancy’s financial advisor had recommended getting a reverse mortgage, something her advisor had already done for herself.
Nancy finally reached out to Aileen at AAG who helped her connect all the dots as far as showing her what her life going forward could look like with a reverse mortgage.
“Aileen, she’s amazing, she makes you feel like a friend, but she still is professional,” Nancy said. “I never doubted that I was doing the right thing. It felt right throughout the whole process.”
Working with gifted children and experiencing widowhood at a relatively early age, Nancy knows how precious each day can be. She was also in a near-fatal accident in Oregon a few years ago, which makes her feel as if she has been given a second chance — one she is going to try to make the most of, with a little assistance from her reverse mortgage loan.
“I feel as if everything is falling into place,” Nancy said. “I feel I can breathe. I feel joy about it.”
As an educator, Nancy knows one of the best teaching methods is to let others discover things for themselves in their own due time: Show them, don’t tell them. Be a positive example.
Would she recommend a reverse mortgage loan to others?
“It was right for me,” Nancy said. “If it’s right for you, do it.
“For me, I never have to worry about where I’ll live – I always have a home.” *
To find out if a reverse mortgage loan is right for you, click here.
*With a reverse mortgage loan, homeowners can live in their home for as long as they choose, provided they continue to maintain their home, pay property taxes and homeowners insurance, and comply with their loan terms.
