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Special Reports
Reverse Mortgages
Adams Joins Dominion
By Brad Finkelstein
Dominion Commercial Capital here, a mortgage broker whose business focuses include
reverse mortgages, has hired Gregory K. Adams as director of reverse mortgages and senior products.
The product is gaining in credibility and exposure with senior citizens, Mr. Adams said, adding, "It's nothing
but upside right now."
He has been a reverse mortgage specialist for over seven years and prior to first joining the mortgage industry
worked in real estate for 10 years.
Reverse mortgages are one of the few growth areas in the industry at the present time, he noted, and more and more
companies are not only entering the field, they are developing variations on existing products or their own proprietary
products.
When he first started working with reverse mortgage borrowers, the product was relatively unknown. Today many people,
if not familiar with the specifics, at least have heard about it and have an idea about what it does.
Dominion is a correspondent for Financial Freedom, one of the largest players in the reverse mortgage field. The
company does business in the state of Michigan, especially in the Detroit area.
Many people are on a fixed income, and with issues in the economy, the cost of medicine, the need to make home
repairs, people "have to make life decisions," he said.
There are now a lot of checks and balances in the origination process, Mr. Adams said, which is one of the things
he likes. These protections "make sure the senior is taken care of."
While much of the legwork for reaching potential borrowers is accomplished by Mr. Adams going out into the community,
now he also is receiving phone calls because people are referring their friends.
But even with all the information and knowledge about reverse mortgages, there are still a number of myths that
are going around.
The No. 1 myth, he said, is the mortgage company or the government takes the home after the borrower passes away.
It is an educational process to correct these misconceptions and there are some obstacles to overcome.
Mr. Adams said it is not just the senior who should be educated, but also the entire family. "I encourage
seniors to have their families involved in the process." This includes having the whole family present during
the mandatory counseling session.
Unlike other forms of mortgage lending, patience is one of the keys to success for originators of reverse mortgages.
It is not money that motivates Mr. Adams to do his job, it is the satisfaction of making a difference in someone's
life. That is just as important, he declared.
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