In Reverse
In this issue, we spend a lot of time talking about how professional lenders can continually become better— sharper—at what they do. That is one focus of NRMLA’s Annual Meeting & Expo planned for September 2024 in San Diego, CA. One way professionals can learn is by listening to how other experts go about their craft through tips and ideas that help them constantly improve. That is the con- cept behind the loan officer roundtable that will be held on the morning of Tuesday, September 24, 2024, a few hours before the Annual Meeting begins. And there will be an opportunity to ask questions, too. “It’s an open discussion for everybody. Anyone can pipe up,” says Bruce Simmons, CRMP, a reverse mort- gage specialist with American Liberty Mortgage based in Colorado. Simmons will be among those who will lead the discussion. “That is the best way to find out who is doing what.” More details about the Annual Meeting can be found in the article Sharpening Your Saw (p. 20). Navigating Legislatures Another article in this issue examines how loan experts in Massachusetts collaborated with lawmakers to update the rules that required in-person counseling for people seeking a reverse mortgage. While allowing people to conduct the counseling remotely made sense during the COVID-19 pandemic, the effort to change the law took years. The stakehold- ers in Massachusetts had to navigate the legislature and changes in administrations to see the effort through. “What we found through our experience here is that, as the saying goes, ‘It takes a village to make things happen,’” Brett Kirkpatrick, a reverse lender and vice president at The Federal Savings Bank, tells writer Joel Berg in the article Working With Legislators (p. 24). Readers nationwide can learn from the experiences in Massachusetts, even though each state will have its own rules on legislation. And you shouldn’t let the complex nature of lawmaking deter you from trying to influence policy, Scott Norman, CEO of the Texas Mortgage Bankers Association, says in the article.
“You don’t have to understand exactly how a bill becomes a law and how the amendment process works,” says Norman, who took the job at the association after years of being a NRMLA member and co-chair of its board. Understanding How Others Fit in A third example of how to get stronger and better at your job by listening to the experts can be found in an expanded Servicing Corner (p. 28). The article written by Celink— How to Prepare Borrowers and Their Heirs for the Death of the Last Borrower —delves into the details of what happens with a HECM loan. The article includes not only important information but also advice for loan officers. “Loan officers should not advise borrowers that they will have 12 months to pay off the loan or sell the home. This is not accurate and leads to misunderstandings,” Celink writes. “Loan officers should advise borrowers that their heirs need to contact the servicer as soon as possible following the borrower’s death or other events of default to find out what is required to obtain an extension.” Carpenters who understand that their work will be preceded and then followed by other tradespeople are sure to build the best possible product and create the best reputations. So, loan officers who know what happens before and after they take applications are sure to succeed much more than those who do not. And the entire pro- fession will benefit. All of that can happen if professionals—even those who already are experts at their craft—understand the importance of continually sharpening their saws. Loan officers who know what happens before and after they take applications are sure to succeed much more than those who do not.
Thomas A. Barstow, senior editor of Reverse Mortgage , is a writer and editor based in Pennsylvania.
REVERSE MORTGAGE / SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2024 3
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