THE ELDERLY WOMAN lived in a home worth $360,000 but had only $500 in monthly income and a hole in the roof that required repair. When Ellen Skaggs, CRMP, learned of her plight, she lined up a reverse mortgage and found a contractor willing to make the repairs in advance and accept escrowed payment from the proceeds. No one else had seen a way out of the dilemma, despite the valuable asset the woman had in her home. She stayed in that home and got another $500 monthly income from the reverse mortgage. “I love puzzles, I guess,” says Skaggs. “I love to put the pieces together. I thrive off of it. It just takes a little imagination.” Skaggs started her mortgage career with firsttime homebuyers, specializing in VA loans for Vietnam veterans. From there, she climbed the learning ladder, adding Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans to her portfolio. “If you can become a student of the business, then you’re going to survive,” she says. However, advancing her career meant managing people—21 loan officers at one point—instead of working directly with clients. In 2011, she joined New American Funding for the chance to return to her roots. Her desk happened to be near the offices of the firm’s founders, Rick and Patty Arvielo, who overheard her discussing reverse mortgages. They asked her to take charge of reverse mortgages and lead a nationwide expansion of the division. “I took on that responsibility, and they have created a position that is beyond my wildest dreams of being happy at a job,” Skaggs says. She and her hand-picked team of six loan officers perform reverse mortgages nationwide. Clients can receive personalized, face-to-face services at local branches, and Skaggs is licensed in 37 states. Now that she is in her 70s, she relates to the circumstances of her clientele, just like those first-time buyers early in Solving ‘Puzzles’ for People Appeals to This CRMP A Chat With Ellen Skaggs, Reverse National Production Manager, New American Funding By M. Diane McCormick Ellen Skaggs CRMP: Across the Kitchen Table 16 REVERSE MORTGAGE / MAY- JUNE 2022
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