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Reverse mortgage estimator: how much could your home free up?

A reverse mortgage (the federally insured kind is a HECM) lets homeowners 62+ turn equity into cash without a monthly mortgage payment — useful for funding in-home care while staying put. It also has real costs, so read those first. This gives a rough estimate; nothing is saved or sent.

Before the number, the trade-offs. A reverse mortgage charges upfront fees and ongoing interest that compounds, so the balance grows over time and reduces what's left of your home's value — often most of your estate. You must keep paying property taxes, insurance, and upkeep, or the loan can come due. It can affect needs-based benefits like Medicaid. HUD requires independent counseling before you can take one out. For someone with no heirs it can be a sensible way to age at home; treat the estimate below as a starting point for that counseling session, not a decision.

Must be 62 or older to qualify. Older = more available.

A reverse mortgage must pay off any existing loan first.

$184,000 estimated funds available
Roughly what a HECM might free up at this age and value.
Estimated principal limit$184,000
about 46% of the home value
Equity that stays in the home$216,000
reduced further as interest compounds
Eligible at 62+ · you must keep paying taxes, insurance & upkeep
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If this looks worth exploring

Compare it against the other ways to fund care before committing — see the care cost calculator and the guide on paying for long-term care alone. The National Council on Aging publishes a balanced consumer guide, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau explains the risks in plain terms. HUD-approved counseling is required and is the right place to get real numbers.

How this estimate works. It applies a rough, age-based principal-limit factor to your home value (capped at the FHA lending limit, about $1.2M in 2025) and subtracts any existing mortgage. Actual amounts depend on current interest rates, your exact age, HUD's published factors, and lender fees — they will differ, sometimes a lot. This is a planning estimate, not an offer or financial advice, and is not affiliated with HUD or FHA. Nothing you enter is stored or sent; it runs in your browser.