Does your job ever, from time to time, force you to provide the answer to what you feel is a simple and obvious question? Do you feel a twinge of embarrassment at your inability to contain slight laughter upon responding?
If you can relate to this situation, I want to confess that I have, on more than one occasion, spoken with a mortgage prospect who, shall we say, would be “of retirement age.” This person will ask, “Am I too old to get a mortgage?” The logic, of course, is that if the likelihood the mortgage term would exceed life expectancy, there’s no way the bank would want to take the credit risk. Makes sense, right?
This is incorrect. We may not exercise age discrimination in lending. So long as the borrower is not a minor and otherwise has legal capacity to make important decisions, then the qualifying criteria such as income, assets and credit, are the same for the 91-year old borrower as the 31-year old.
As I write this in 2018, what’s interesting to note is that the Greatest Generation, a demographic that generally hated debt to start, is often the same that has the belief that their age prevents them from perhaps getting the loan they need for any number of reasons. The aversion to debt and the assumption that no lender would take the age-related risk often prevent so much as inquiry being made about feasibility. Hopefully, this post will confirm that we’re happy to help — even if you should survive to 105.
Carpe diem,
Robert J. Spinosa
Vice President of Mortgage Lending
Guaranteed Rate
NMLS: 22343
Cell/Text: 415-367-5959
rob.spinosa@rate.com
Marin Office: 324 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., San Anselmo, CA 94960
Berkeley Office: 1400 Shattuck Ave., Suite 1, Berkeley, CA 94709
*The views and opinions expressed on this site about work-related matters are my own, have not been reviewed or approved by Guaranteed Rate and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Guaranteed Rate. In no way do I commit Guaranteed Rate to any position on any matter or issue without the express prior written consent of Guaranteed Rate’s Human Resources Department.
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