May-June2020 Issue

by most seniors, but it requires planning for both physical and financial realities. Council members include homecare providers, ther- apists, elder law attorneys, audiologists, financial advis- ers, real estate agents and a broad range of other profes- sionals. They often earn senior-related designations in their fields, such as senior real estate specialist, chartered adviser for senior living or executive certificate in home modification. The council operates chapters around the U.S., includ- ing in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The chapters offer valuable networking opportunities to reverse mortgage lenders, like Timothy Kennedy. He is a member of the Long Island, NY, chapter and a Certified Reverse Mortgage Professional with US Mortgage Corp. in Melville, NY. Membership in the chapter has expanded Kennedy’s professional network and helped boost his credibility, he says. Any referrals that result, he adds, are stronger. “Getting a referral from somebody in the National Aging in Place Council is better than when someone calls in based on a website or a card they pick up in a deli.” Kennedy says he also has helped fellow chapter mem- bers see reverse mortgages in a new, more positive light. “That’s what I love about the National Aging in Place Council,” explains Kennedy, who has been a member for three years. “It gives me a pulpit, so to speak, to educate other professionals on the misconceptions of the past and to explain the benefits available today.” And given what fellow chapter members do, he is con- fident the message is reaching the right audience. “They’re in the trenches. They’re speaking to seniors. They’re speaking to the chil- dren,” Kennedy says. “Any amount of time that I have to let them know about reverse mortgages is good.” And a little bit of time is often what it takes to change minds. Laura Giunta, chair of the council’s Long Island chapter, had never heard of reverse mortgages when she began working in the at-home care for seniors field. When she did start to hear about the product, it came with a negative stigma. Then, she had a client who became a reverse borrower. “I watched what it did for her and how much it improved her quality of life,” says Giunta, who is now education and outreach director for Harbor House Memory Care Community in Oyster Bay, NY. “I had been afraid to utilize the tool, but once I did, I was so grateful it was there.” Ever since then, she has made sure to distribute information about reverse mortgages to her clients, she says. They tend to start thinking about the product as their need for assistance grows. Seniors might start out needing help with shopping, for example. Later, they might need in-home care. At some point, they begin to consider whether they need to modify their homes to make them more accessible. The expenses start to add up. “When we see someone who’s struggling, it’s a matter of providing options and solutions,” Giunta says. “I never tell people, ‘Here is your only answer.’” In fact, a reverse mortgage may not be the right option for every senior. Some may qualify forMedicaid or veterans’ benefits. Others may have a pension or retirement savings. But if they settle on a reverse mortgage, she says, she knows she can put them in touch with a trusted specialist. “That’s exactly what the National Aging in Place Council is about,” says Giunta, who is on the council’s national board of directors. In addition to networking, the council also produces resources that members can use in conversations about aging in place. They include a handbook, The Costs of Aging , which includes expert commentary on the myriad issues facing seniors and a series of events for National Referral Sources continued on page 22 Timothy Kennedy “That’s what I love about the National Aging in Place Council. It gives me a pulpit, so to speak, to educate other professionals on the misconceptions of the past and to explain the benefits available today.” —Timothy Kennedy, CRMP, US Mortgage Corp. REVERSE MORTGAGE / MAY-JUNE 2020 21