Reverse mortgages offer benefits, pitfalls

Things have been pretty bad in the mortgage business for the last three years. So, Phyllis Taylor found her paychecks getting slimmer.

Taylor, who works for a mortgage firm, could no longer afford her mortgage. She thought she might have to sell her house in Chesterfield and move to something cheaper.

Instead, she took out a "reverse mortgage" big enough to pay off her current home loan, along with some other debt. Her monthly payments disappeared.

"For me, it was a no brainer," said Taylor, who says she is "a little bit over 62" years old. "It eliminated a big headache."

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