The guy who advertises them is Fred Thomas. He was an actor on Law and Order, was a practicing attorney, and was a US Senator for TN.

My guess is that he is rolling in money without doing these ads. He actually is an astute man, which makes me wonder why he advertises the reverse mortgage. There are very few situations where a RM is a good financial solution, and he knows that - unless he's gone senile.

very well said cathyvv exactly what I told my son legal scam for sure I get the shivers everytime I see those tv ads and often think to myself how many elderlys are getting rip off my my just never end some of these scam ideas people come with

Robert Wagner comes to my mind as someone doing the reverse mortgage ads.

RM was the worst thing my late husband and I ever did. They are fast talking and promise a lot, but later you find out that it was not what you were promised or what it was cracked up to be.

What problems did you have with the RM?

If it sounds too good to be true it probably is! RM are not short term fixes for home improvement.

Thank you for the information - that helps explain what happened to my mother. When my dad died in 2007, their only real asset was the paid off house. Then my mother became unable to take care of herself and my sister took over the finances. She moved my mother into her house and did a reverse mortgage on Mom and Dad's house. She took all the money as a lump sum. I believe she got a check for $90,000, but the mortgage was $110,000 - the difference was fees and interest. My mother died in 2010, we just let the house go back to the lender, Bank of America. They have not done anything with it, but they continue to send statements to my brother with the increasing balance. I believe the balance is now approaching $150,000. The house would probably sell for $60,000 now that it has been ignored for so long. By the way, my sister was being investigated for financial elder abuse by the county when my mother died - that is why my brother now gets the statements. It was a nightmare and if my dad knew what she did to his paid off house, he would be livid. Please stay away from reverse mortgages!!

We have a very good investment column in our local paper and he stresses that RM are very bad for most people and can cause lots of problems, so make sure you see a very good lawyer if you look into one. To update your kitchen, there are other and better ways. Good luck and be careful.

The spokesperson is just an actor- period
 

Not only is Fred Thompson a spokesperson for the RM but Henry Winkler (The Fonz from Happy Days), Robert Wagner and James Garner, too- all actors. My guess is they were chosen because those eligible to do a RM (age 62+) would somehow trust them because we grew up watching them on TV. Same went for Dennis Weaver doing Ameriprise Financial commercials. None of them are financial experts-just actors.

My advice (and I do have financial experience) is to make a wish list of what needs to be done and what you "desire" to be done. Be honest in making those lists. If your needs list is much larger than your wallet, I would ask that you spread out the work. Cut eating out, runs to the store without lists, etc. Get at least 3 quotes for all the jobs. Let each of them know that you are looking at other contractors. Make sure they quote you on the same job, materials, and timeline so you are comparing apples to apples. Then if you truly need these things done at once, get a home equity loan. Shop for that too. Go to your "local" bank as well as the big ones too. Ask questions and understand the loan. And finally don't borrow more money than you need. Good luck!

It is a shame they are doing those ads on tv for reverse mortgage.