A reverse mortgage is a type of home loan that lets you convert a portion of the equity in your home into cash. The equity that has built up over the years in your home can be paid to you. Unlike a traditional home equity loan or second mortgage, no repayment is required until the borrower(s) no longer use the home as their principal residence. You are still required to pay your real estate taxes, insurance and other conventional payments like utilities.

The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the current interest rate, and the appraised value of your home. The older you are, the more valuable your home is, the lower the interest, the more you can borrow. You can use an online calculator on the AARP website to get an idea of what you may be able to borrow.

You can be paid from a reverse mortgage in 4 ways: 1 – get cash all at once; 2 – a monthly cash advance 3 – a creditline which lets you decide when and how much of your available cash is paid to you; 4 – a combination of these payment methods.

To qualify for a reverse mortgage in the United States, you must be at least 62 years of age.  There are or credit or minimum income requirements, however, there are other requirements that homeowners must make sure they qualify for before they invest significant time or money into the process. You must also reside in the home. Some types of dwellings do not qualify such as mobile homes, however, condominiums and manufactured homes that meet FHA requirements may be eligible.

With most reverse mortgages the money can be used for anything, however, the borrower must pay off any existing mortgage(s) with the proceeds from the reverse mortgage and, if needed, additional personal funds.

Before proceeding with a reverse mortgage, applicants have to seek third party financial counseling from a source approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The counseling ensures the borrower completely understands what a reverse mortgage is and how it’s obtained.
 
You can contact the Housing Counseling Clearinghouse on (800) 569-4287 for the name and telephone number of a HUD-approved counseling agency and a list of FHA-approved lenders within your area.

For more information visit hud.gov.

Video:  Reverse Mortgage

Below is a very good 5 minute video of Dave Remsey’s recommendations on how to get your finances on track. Dave Ramsey is national radio personality and best-selling author of  “The Total Money Makeover” and “The Financial Peace Planner: A Step-by-Step Guide to Restoring Your Family’s Financial Health”. 

Dave Ramsey is a personal money management expert who knows first-hand what financial peace means having lived a true rags-to-riches, riches-to-rags and back to rags-to-riches lifestyle.

By age 26 Dave Remsey established a nearly $1 million net worth making $250,000 a year only to lose it by age 30. He however rebuilt his financial life and now helps people with their finances.

Video: Dave Ramsey on How to be Financially Successful

Today General Motors and Segway unveiled an electric two-seat prototype vehicle with just two wheels, intended to navigate urban traffic.  The companies claim the vehicle could be used on college campuses and in gated communities as well as on city streets.

The GM-Segway prototype is called the PUMA, for “Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility.” It can automatically balance itself fore and aft and can travel at up to 35 mph for up to 35 miles between recharges.

The question is; will the PUMA sell when introduced to the market?  The Segway has been on the market for years and hasn’t lived up to expectations.  Additionally, should GM be investing in a product that may not sell, especially in the United States?  The infrastructure isn’t here for these small death traps to drive in urban traffic.  The PUMA may do well in other countries that already use small vehicles (bicycles, motor-cycles, etc) in urban areas, such as in China and India.

Only time shall tell, it’s a prototype.  But I would not feel comfortable driving the PUMA in Manhattan, NYC going 35 miles per hour.  When I see such small vehicles on the road, I consider them coffins.  This is why I’ll never ride a motorcycle! 

What do you think?  Leave your comments below!

See more photo gallery of the PUMA at Newsday.com.

Video: The PUMA in Action

Below is a funny but true video clip from Saturday Night Live (SNL) titled “Don’t Buy Stuff You Can’t afford”.  Sticking to this simple advice can keep most people out of financial problems.  Unfortunately, most people ignore this rule!

SNL Video – Don’t Buy Stuff You Can’t Afford

Below is the first video of NBC’s Dateline report titled “Inside the Financial Crisis: Mortgage Madness” (aired last Sunday 3/22/09).

The show takes an in-debt look at the current mortgage crisis that we have been bombarded with by the media.  However, Dateline gave a good explanation as to how it all started and how we got here.

What is amazing about the show is how people were getting mortgage loans that they clearly couldn’t afford.  The entire system got so corrupted from the banks, brokers, Wall Street,  ratings agencies to even the borrowers that everyone was just looking to make money and ignored the fact the borrower would not be able to pay back the money.   Isn’t that absolutely crazy?

As an example, one borrower was able to get a $260,000 loan with a monthly payment of $2,100 but the borrower had an income of $1,600.  Clearly, people lied to get these loans approved.  In my opinion many people should be sent to prison over the current mortgage crisis.

Video: Inside the Financial Crisis: Mortgage Madness

Visit msnbc.msn.com to view the rest of the Morgage Madness.

A few days ago I posted an article about why I never thought about creating Word Combination Locks.  Today I’m wondering why I never thought about dry-erase paint created by IdeaPaint.

IdeaPaint sells a paint that with a single-coat roller-applied makes any smooth surface into a dry-erase writing surface. What a neat idea! 

The paint is much cheaper than purchasing a dry erase board.  The paint cost $3.99 per sq. ft. and can be purchased at IdeaPaint’s website.  The paint can be used in conference rooms, creative spaces, classrooms, home offices, kid’s rooms, and playrooms.

IdeaPaint is environmentally friendly, which makes significant improvements in raw material utilization, energy consumption, and air quality.  See video below of IdeaPaint at Neocon.

For more information visit IdeaPaint.com.

Related Article:  Why Didn’t I think of This? – Word Combination Locks

Video: Neocon Idea Paint

Below is a very interesting video series titled “Corrupt Banking System”. There are 5 videos titled, “Cartels Robbing the Public”, “How Money is Created” “Money is Debt”, “Monetary Reform” and “Warning About the NWO”.  Enjoy!

1. Corrupt Banking System – Cartels Robbing the Public (1/5)

2. Corrupt Banking System – How Money is Created (2/5)

3. Corrupt Banking System – Money is Debt (3/5)

4. Corrupt Banking System – Monetary Reform (4/5)

5. Corrupt Banking System – Warning About the NWO (5/5)