This Faith and Finance podcast is underwritten in part by Movement Mortgage. Movement provides residential home loans and reverse mortgage options in all 50 states. Founded in 2008 during a major financial crisis, Movement was created to love, value, and serve people and communities. Learn more at faithfy.com/slash movement. Movement Mortgage LLC supports equal housing opportunity, NMLS number 39179.
For licensing information, visit NMLSconsumerAccess.org. Uh Homes hold memories, they hold families, history, and meaning, and for many people, a lifetime of love. But as we age, many homes quietly become harder and riskier to live in. Hi, I'm Rob West. Most U.S.
homes were never designed for aging bodies, yet many older adults feel financially locked in. Today, we'll talk with Harlan Akola about an option that can help them move into safer, healthier homes without taking on new monthly payments. And then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000. This is Faith in Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions. It's always great to have Harlan Akola with us.
He leads the reverse mortgage team at Movement Mortgage, a faithful underwriter of this program. Harlan, always great to have you here, my friend.
Well, thanks, Rob. It's good to be here. Harlan, before we talk about housing and finances, let's start with safety. How serious is the danger of older adults falling in their homes? You know, it's talked about very little, but falls are way more common than most people realize.
About 30 million older Americans fall every year. Wow. About one in five of those falls actually result in serious injury and leading to hospitalization. The medical costs alone, just for falls, is $50 billion a year. But quite frankly, the emotional lifestyle costs for families are much higher because of what it does.
And most of these falls happen just in ordinary places, like stairways or bathrooms or entryways. It's not highly unusual situations. Yeah, that's sobering. I had no idea. Why are so many homes such a poor fit for people as they age?
Well, most homes were built 10, 20, 30, 50, 100 years ago for younger families in different stages of life. Only one in ten homes has the basic things like step-free entries, main floor bedrooms and bathrooms. And as mobility changes, everyday features like stairs and tubs and narrow hallways are real problems and often push people into nursing homes. Mm. Yeah, and yet, Harlan, even when people know their home isn't ideal anymore, many feel stuck.
Why is that?
Well, they're locked in partially emotionally because that's where they raise their families and so on, but also financially. Most people my age in the fourth quarter of life have low mortgage rates, two, three percent, or their homes paid off. And they worry that, well, if I sell, I'm going to have to get a new mortgage payment. That's kind of risky. And they just don't see a good way forward.
So they just stay until something really bad does happen. And that's what we really try to avoid in helping our clients move when they are healthy rather than when something goes wrong.
So let's talk about an option many listeners may not know exists. How can a reverse mortgage for purchase change that picture? Very few people know that a reverse mortgage can be used at the point of purchase. It's not just to keep you in your house or to give you money in the house that you're in. But allows older adults to sell the current home, use that money to buy a new one.
With getting a mortgage sometimes for a larger amount. For example, somebody could sell a $300,000 home, buy a $500,000 home with a $200,000 mortgage that does not require monthly payment ever for as long as they live. That opens the door to newer homes that are easy to maintain, more energy efficient. and simply better designed for aging in place. Mm.
So what shift in thinking do most families need as they consider housing decisions later in life?
Well, the best thing to do is any kind of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It's something that they have to look at in advance and looking at what should I do with the housing wealth that's in my current house to improve my quality of life and not just looking at it as a last resort when something does go wrong. We really subscribe to Proverbs 27, 12, the prudence see danger and hide themselves. That wisdom applies to homes to see that danger, that problem ahead before a wheelchair comes along, before a fall comes, before something goes wrong. That is something that we know can make a difference.
And when you're purchasing the home for the fourth quarter of life, it should not only be your best home, but it should be your safest home. That's right. And so even if you're downsizing, given that two thirds of retirees still have mortgages, they may need to take out a mortgage even for that smaller home, but the reverse mortgage purchase would allow them to do that where the payment is always optional, right?
Well, yes, most people want to pay cash for a house, but sometimes that newer house, that safer house, is not something they can afford to pay cash for. But we are able to help them upsize and also keep some of the money that they need for the future that they can put into their investment bucket so they can enjoy life and still have a zero mortgage payment that is optional for the rest of their lives. Incredible. Harlan, always appreciate your educational approach. Thanks for being here.
Thanks. Appreciate the conversation to be of help to others. Folks, if you'd like to learn more about whether a reverse mortgage for purchase could help in your situation, learn more at movement.com slash faith. That's movement.com slash faith. Back with your questions after this.
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Start your 30-day free trial today at faithfy.com slash app. Faith in Finance is thankful for support from The Good Investor, a book by Robin John. In his book, Robin shares his journey from an immigrant child struggling in school to co-founder and CEO of Eventide Asset Management, a faith-based investment firm. This Faith and Work memoir seeks to inspire readers to view their work and investments as opportunities to honor God and bring blessing to the world. More information is available at goodinvestor.com.
That's goodinvestor.com. Um Thanks for joining us today on Faith and Finance. Taking your calls and questions today at 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7,000. Let's dive in.
We'll begin in Noblesville, Indiana. Hi, Hank. Go ahead, sir. Yeah, I've got two kids that are in college right now. Twenty some years ago, my grandfather set up a 529 for each of them.
He passed in twenty ten, and I had another daughter that was born in twenty ten. I'm curious, with the money that's left over when my two older kids graduate from college, if there's money left in their five twenty nines, can that be applied to my younger daughters? It sure can. Yeah, what you would want to do is either do a plan-to-plan rollover to another child, or you could just do a beneficiary change. And so, in your case, you may just want to do a beneficiary change and then you won't need to transfer any money.
And it just allows another qualifying family member to use those funds, which includes brothers and sisters and a whole host of others.
So, you'll just want to get in touch with your 529 planned administrator and let them know that you want to do a beneficiary change to that other child, and you can go from there.
Okay. When she finishes college then, Could we, if that was all like combined, could I split that apart into three different accounts then again, so each child would have one for their future families? Yeah, so what you would do is you would open another account. And then you would be able at that point to transfer a portion to do a plan to plan rollover into another account with a different beneficiary on it. And that would be the way you'd do it if you want to split it up among other children.
All right, perfect. Thanks for your help. I appreciate it. All right, Hank. Thanks for your call today.
We appreciate you. To Chicago, DK, go ahead. Yes, uh Rob. I've heard uh a lot of the secular investment kind of management, financial management recommendations in for reretirement funding, often recommend maybe ten percent in precious metals. And I was just wondering on your take on that and on the biblical take on that.
Yeah. It's a great question. And I would say, you know, the advice to hold somewhere between 5% and 10% of your portfolio, I would say 10% is certainly that upper end of the range in precious metals.
So, you know, typically gold, although maybe gold and silver, is a common hedge against inflation and currency devaluation, not to mention just for appreciation. We've seen dramatic rises in the last year or so in gold and silver. You know, the downside is they don't generate any income.
So it's not like there's a yield or a dividend or anything like that. And there are, you know, premiums when you buy and sell based on the physical gold. And then you have the storage issues. But I like gold. I think it's a great part of a properly diversified portfolio.
I like to think about it in terms of a 5%. Forever allocation where you'd maybe take 5% of your portfolio, you go ahead and buy the physical gold, and you just plan to keep it forever and pass it down. And then, if you want to move beyond the 5% up to a full 10% allocation, at least one option to consider would be with that second 5%, go ahead and look at an exchange-traded fund.
So, like GLD or one of the other exchange-traded funds where you're buying it like a stock, but it moves in lockstep with the spot price of the metal. And there's actual gold in a vault that's connected to the outstanding shares of the exchange traded fund.
So it's a way for you to take a position in gold without having to take that additional 5% and get the dealer and store it and secure it and all those things. And then, if you wanted to lighten your percentage from 10 back to 5%, you just place a market order and it's gone versus you having to try to find a buyer for the physical gold. But I think, just generally speaking, that idea that you could consider going all the way up to 10%, I think is sound.
Okay. Thank you very much. Do you mind if I run a follow-up by you, or do you need anything? No, go ahead. No, no, that's fine.
Um so Yeah, as as I'm nearing retirement, I'm also I guess wanting, you know, I get the tithe part, and we try to, you know, we give tithes for. I don't know, I guess many years. But when your income changes and you're kind of at your nest ec stage, I mean, I guess definitely is it's just continue to give ten percent of what you're what your nest egg is or Is that is that Black and white from where you've seen scripture. Yeah, it's a great question. And I think, you know, it always requires that we go back to the tithe and look at the role of the tithe in the first place.
And in fact, we did a deep dive on this in issue three of our Faithful Stewart magazine.
So when we're done here today, I'll have the team get your information. We'll send you a copy where we just kind of look at the idea of the tithe, at all of the different instances of the tithe in the Old and New Testament. What's interesting is in the New Testament, in all the core teachings on money, and we cite all of them, there's really not any mentions of the tithe.
Now, it is mentioned four times in the New Testament, and each time it's a side note and a conversation about something else. And that may be surprising given that stewardship teaching is often centered on tithing. But I do think that giving 10% is still a helpful way to really step into faithful, consistent generosity. But I think there's much more to the picture of New Testament stewardship. You know, we're really encouraged to evaluate our heart postures rather than a specific set of rules, you know, like we saw in the old covenant and the Mosaic law.
And so I think as you explore that, you know, what you'll find is that, you know, giving is to be a response to God's grace, freely and joyfully given, consistently, proportionately to what God has provided for you. And if you want to use a tithe as in a tenth of your increase as a starting point, great. But I think it's just that. It's a beginning point.
Now, to your point, once you, if you've tithed, On the gross all your working years, much of what you're then distributing back to yourself is what you paid in. And so I think you could acknowledge that and say, okay, each time I take, let's say, a distribution from my IRA, a portion of that is a return of capital, a portion of that is appreciation. And you could try to back into what that is. Maybe you say, rather than tithing on the full amount, I'm going to tithe on half of it. And you might do the same thing with Social Security, because if you live a full life expectancy, there's some sort of growth component over and above what you paid in through your portion of the FICA taxes.
Now, keep in mind, half of what went into Social Security if you were a W-2 employee went in from your employer and not you, unless you were self-employed and you paid both sides. But again, I think you could apply that 50% rule and just say, okay, half of what comes out in the form of a benefit check is a return of what I've already paid. In through FICA taxes and tithed on, and half of it is either my employer and/or some sort of growth component that is in there.
So, I think that would be perfectly appropriate. But again, I would come down to, I think it's a heart posture first and foremost. God is not an accountant. And I think we look at the tithe as a great starting point, but then we look to give beyond that as the Lord blesses you. And at the end of the day, it's really the heart behind the gift that you're cheerful, not reluctant, not under compulsion, just as an overflow of gratitude toward the grace that has been extended to you and to me.
Does that make sense? Yeah, no, it's it's great and it's uh it's a good like guideline. Kinda like uh having tied as a base, but I think we'll part or blessing and make that available to the increase.
So Thank you. Appreciate your input. Absolutely, DK. Stay on the line. My team will get your information.
We're going to send you issue three of Faithful Stewart. I think you'll enjoy it. We appreciate your call. We'll be right back with much more. Stick around.
As the leading advocate for the Christian financial industry, Kingdom Advisors serves the public by promoting the integration of a biblical worldview across every aspect of the financial services industry. And we serve a growing network of thousands of Christian financial professionals, equipping and empowering them to carry biblical financial wisdom to their clients, peers, and community. For more information, visit kingdomadvisors.com. That's kingdomadvisors.com. We are grateful for support from Movement Mortgage, who provides residential home loans and reverse mortgage options in all 50 states.
Guided by a mission to love and value people, Movement seeks to help individuals and families make informed financial decisions from buying a home to planning for retirement. More information is available at faithfy.com/slash movement. Movement Mortgage LLC supports equal housing opportunity. NMLS number 39179. For licensing information, visit nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
Really great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. I'm Rob West. We're taking your calls and questions. Here in our final segment, I've got room for a few more questions today. If you want to call right now, you've got to get in quickly, 800-525-7,000.
Any financial questions today, 800-525-7,000, you can call right now. Let's go to Indianapolis. Angel, how can I help? Hi. I was a caregiver for my mom for eleven years.
She passed away about a year and a half ago. In the process, I accumulated about fifteen thousand dollars in debt. Since then, I was trying to recover from that, and I lost my job over the summer and have now just been dealing with an eviction. As I start this new budget, And I'm trying to figure out what should my focus be. I have no 401k.
I'm almost 50 years old. I have no savings. I have obviously this new debt in addition to this very old debt. And I just I don't know what my focus should be as I'm starting over. Yeah.
Well, Angel, I know this is a difficult spot that you're in, and you feel the weight of that. Let me just affirm, though, what you did there as you cared for your mom. I'm so thrilled to hear that you did what honors the Lord and served her in that season. And I know that there's some fallout to that financially, but I'm confident that that pleased the Lord, what you did there. And I just want to be an encouragement to you there.
I think the immediate goal here is really to stabilize first and then rebuild.
So, you know, let's just focus for the next 30 or 60 days on your immediate priorities, which would be first housing and safety.
So, moving in with a friend, I think, is a great move, keeping housing costs as low as possible. I think set clear expectations, just as that's going to be new to perhaps both of you. But that's first and foremost. And then, I think, you know, beyond that, even before budgeting, we just want to stop things from getting worse.
So, you know, we need to try to, to the extent, you know, you can find employment. And while you're waiting, I would call your creditors, lean into them, don't run away from them or ignore them. Tell them exactly what's going on and that you've lost your job and you're seeking new employment and, you know, avoid new debt at all costs. But this is really about just buying time so that you can get employed. And then if we can, with your reduced housing, keeping expenses to the bare minimum, and this is really, you know, what I would call a May Day budget.
Where we keep the utilities on, we keep gas in the car to get to work or find a job, we keep a roof over your head, we keep food on the table, and everything else is negotiable at that point. And then, right after that, is keeping the debts current just so we can avoid any additional expenses on fees or a judgment of some kind that would just create more challenges. Obviously, your top financial priority needs to be your job search. I mean, that is your full-time job because we need income. And if you take temporary or interim work, prioritize reliable hours, health benefits if possible, and avoid kind of waiting for that perfect job because we need cash flow to restore control.
And then once you're back, Employed, and we're getting the debt on track, then I would say, let's start an emergency fund, even while you still have debt. And even $25 or $50 a paycheck going into some sort of savings account, because without that, every setback creates more debt. And so we want that even smallest of buffers that's going to reduce anxiety for you and prevent future borrowing. And then I think once we get to that point, now we're starting to build what I'll call a bare bones budget where we move beyond just the essentials and start to look at, you know, phone and internet and, you know, those types of things that would be beyond that. And then, you know, I would probably be contacting our friends at Christian Credit Counselors when you're ready and you've got stable income, Christiancreditcounselors.org, to put you in a credit counseling program.
So I know that's a lot, but those are the things that I'm thinking about for you. And here's what I'd like to offer is one of our certified Christian financial counselors to come alongside you, just to be an encouragement to you, to pray with you, to help you prioritize how to handle this, give you some strategies on how you contact your creditors. And when the time is right, they can help you set up that budget and even make decisions on what comes first. There won't be any cost to that. We're going to pay for it.
So they'll meet with you several times virtually. But I think that will be a key step in just making you feel like you've got somebody to bounce ideas off of, somebody that's kind of in the boat walking with you so you don't feel all alone. Does that make sense? Yeah, and thank you very much because trying to prioritize when everything feels so overwhelming is difficult.
So I really appreciate that guidance. Oh, I'm happy to.
So, listen, stay on the line. My team's going to get your information. We'll get a certified Christian financial counselor in touch with you. There will be no cost to you. And that person will contact you and start getting you set up with the first few meetings.
And let's see if we can get you on the right track. And we'll certainly be praying that the Lord provides that job very, very soon, if not immediately.
So, thanks for your call today. Lord bless you. Let's go to Minnesota. Hi, Kevin. How can I help?
Question.
So my wife and I were nervously married. And we're going we're going to speak um she resigned for a job and I'm retired and we're going full time R Ving just to spread the good news about Jesus and do some disaster relief. Oh, cool. And our budget, we're going to yes, so we're going to pay bills out of our budget out of what I get for retirement income. and what's left for our spending.
We're trying to figure out she wants to know what's the best way to Take what we want to have for spending, you know, for just like whatever spending we want to do. Should we take it out in cash and distribute it up between the two of us when it's gone, it's gone? Or? Should we use credit card or debit card? Or what do what do you recommend?
Yeah. Yeah, I mean, it's less about the mechanics and more about just making sure you've got a good plan and you're not spending beyond your means. But I think, you know, as long as all the spending, even that spending that's maybe more discretionary, just as things come and you might, you know, run into an antique store or see something you want or, you know, want to do something fun, unexpected, I would just say, you know, let's build that into the plan and make sure we account for that. And then in terms of, you know, the actual mechanics of the payments, I like credit cards as the primary tool. That's going to give you fraud protection, which is huge when you're traveling.
It's easier, you know, to track for your budget. You get the rewards or the cash back. You don't have to carry large amounts of cash. But the key is that you pay the balance in full and you're using these things for budgeted items. And then you'd want to carry some cash for campgrounds or small towns or tips or emergency situations.
So I'd have a fixed monthly cash amount that you refill once per month. treat that as already spent in the budget. And then use the credit cards for all of the other spending where possible. Does that make sense? It does, yep.
I like the five production of other credit cards. Yeah, that's that's really helpful. Absolutely. Kevin, it sounds like a delightful experience. I'm sure you guys are looking forward to that, and you guys will have a blast out there.
Be careful, and if we can help along the way, don't hesitate to call. Lord bless you. Let me say thanks to my team today. I certainly couldn't do this without the entire cast and crew here at Faith5, but certainly today, Devin Patrick, my producer, Jim Henry providing great research, and Sandy Dickinson handling our phones today. Have a wonderful day, and we'll see you next time.
Bye-bye. Faith in Finance is provided by FaithFu and listeners like you.
