Home equity is sometimes overlooked as a viable resource in retirement. You don’t have to sell your home to find income and liquidity.
With more retirees than ever choosing to age in place, the idea of selling your home to downsize may no longer be part of your plans.
That’s smart, because you don’t have to sell the homestead to produce retirement income and help cover the costs associated with a critical health crisis, or just the effects of aging that require outside care.In the New York Times article The High-Class Problem That Comes With Home Equity, author Ron Lieber, the NYT’s Your Money columnist, suggests that reverse mortgages could be a good product for some retirees who want to tap the equity in their home without selling. We agree, and the Go2Income planning method can now incorporate a reverse mortgage.
I have found that lifetime income, liquidity for unplanned expenses, lower taxes and a financial legacy are the objectives most retirees seek. When they also want to stay in their homes or age in place, I propose that annuities and home equity, added to traditional savings and investments, will best meet their retirement goals.
