By Christine Laue
Midlands News Service

An Omaha agency that helps homeowners facing foreclosure is concerned that senior citizens could be the target of a new wave of predatory lending that strips them of their home equity.

Teresa Coleman Hunter, executive director and chief executive of Family Housing Advisory Services Inc. and Omaha 100 Inc., said that within the past week she has seen an increase in e-mails that appear to be from companies recruiting people to solicit senior citizens who are behind on mortgage payments but have equity in their homes.

The companies purport to have “hot leads,” or data such as phone numbers, addresses, late payment history and loan-to-value ratios on senior citizens. The e-mails say little experience is needed for the job, and they promise commissions for each reverse mortgage secured.

“It’s a recruitment to get in on the business of doing reverse originations on seniors,” Hunter said. “With the foreclosure crisis, that’s how people got into loans they couldn’t afford. Here it is again, with seniors that stand to lose a great deal. And I just don’t want it to happen.”

A reverse mortgage allows people ages 62 and older to obtain loans or cash payments that do not require repayment as long as borrowers remain in their homes, with the lender taking possession after the homeowner dies or moves.

The federally insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program was established in 1990 and handles about 90 percent of the country’s reverse mortgage market. The program provides cash for people who own their homes but may have limited income. Anyone applying for a reverse mortgage must receive counseling from federally approved agencies about the loans and alternatives to them.

Some private companies or individuals, however, can claim to offer reverse mortgages with interest rates or other conditions that can lead to senior citizens losing their homes, Hunter said. The recent spike in e-mails is troublesome because they appear to target senior citizens who are especially vulnerable because they are behind in mortgage payments, she said.

“If they are having problems, we are here to help at no charge to them,” she said.

Family Housing Advisory Services is an Omaha nonprofit comprehensive housing counseling agency certified by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The agency provides counseling on homeownership and reverse mortgages and help for the homeless and near-homeless. It works with homeowners and lenders to devise payment agreements that allow people to stay in their homes.

Omaha 100 is a nonprofit agency that works with a consortium of lenders to increase home ownership.

Senior citizens should be careful with any mail or phone calls they receive on reverse mortgages, said Donna McFadden, director of FHAS’s home ownership program. “Don’t be afraid to ask questions.”

If senior citizens are concerned about any calls or mailings they’ve received offering reverse mortgages, local housing officials advise them to:

Call Family Housing Advisory Services at 934-1777.

Go to one of the agency’s three offices: 2401 Lake St. and 3605 Q St. in Omaha or 10 S. Fourth St. in Council Bluffs.

Visit www.hud.gov or call 800-569-4287.

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