Reverse mortgages can be a daunting undertaking. You may have questions or need time to think or wish to discuss your options with trusted friends or loved ones. One of the many advantages of utilizing an online content mall like Loanry.com and the rest of the Goalry.com family is that we’re available whenever you are, day or night, rain or shine, weekends or holidays or when sister has the flu.

Our informational blogs and online financial tools are operational around the clock. If you have questions, ask them at your convenience – while watching your kid’s soccer practice, waiting in line at the grocery store, or visiting your local library.

When you’re ready to request lender recommendations, submit your information at your leisure, when and where you choose. You don’t have to worry that you’ve forgotten a form or might need to look up a number when you’re in your own home office or sitting in your favorite recliner. No one’s staring at your from across a desk wondering whether or not you measure up or late for their next appointment. Take your time.

We’ll do our best to help you find a lender, and most online lenders pride themselves on efficiency as well. It’s not unusual for money to show up in your account within a day or two once approved. Sure, some questions or situations may require a little longer, but rest assured you are always a priority – even when you’re handling most of your business at 3 a.m. in your bunny pajamas.

Most of the time when we consider long-term financial goals we’re looking at ways to increase wealth, build savings, and strengthen equity in our homes and other investments. A reverse mortgage is in many ways the opposite of this. It seeks a controlled, practical disbursement of what is most likely our single greatest investment – our home – until the total value is exhausted. If all goes well under this arrangement, we live substantially better in our later years but leave nothing behind when we pass.

The best type of reverse mortgage purchase is one you don’t have to make because you have sufficient savings and investments to support you throughout your retirement. The uncertainties of aging and potential complications of any reverse mortgage should prevent it from becoming anyone’s first choice.

That said, life happens and sometimes we find ourselves in our later years in need of reliable additional income in order to meet our basic needs, address unexpected circumstances, or simply to make the most of our golden years. In such situations, our goals may shift. The priority is no longer saving for the future or building an inheritance for our children. Instead, we’re now looking to live that future fruitfully and avoid becoming a burden on our offspring.

Whatever the future may hold, the best way to plan for it is the same. Invest in your own retirement, starting with your earliest post-secondary employment. Institute and follow a household budget, which absolutely must include regular deposits into savings and eventually low-to-moderate risk investments. Watch your credit score and check your credit history for errors in order to give yourself maximum access to financial flexibility at the minimum possible cost. Avoid excessive debt and always look for ways to cut expenses without major sacrifices to your overall “quality of life.”

Finally, teach your kids to do the same, and encourage them throughout their early lives to keep looking ahead. Of course we want them to live to the fullest – this life isn’t all about mutual funds and retirement packages – but that fullness shouldn’t end early because they failed to plan sufficiently. If we end up using our home as security for a reverse mortgage to get us through our closing years, we’d especially like to know our children will be fine because they’ve successfully prepared.