NewRetirement Retirement News Digest : Activism

A standard for seniors

jberman — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 08:19:00 GMT

San Francisco Chronicle, July 17th, 2009

It's hard to believe, but there's one section of the housing market that's going like gangbusters: the reverse mortgage industry, aimed at senior citizens.

Responsible reverse mortgages offer a wonderful opportunity to cash-strapped seniors.

By allowing seniors to tap into their home equity without requiring them to sell their homes, the loans give families greater flexibility during hard times like these. It's no wonder that the market for these loans is exploding: The Government National Mortgage Association announced a record of $590 million worth of reverse mortgage loans in June, shattering the previous record set just a month earlier of $262 million.

But the key word there is "responsible," and state Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, noticed that not every lender was behaving responsibly. Just as prime-rate borrowers were sometimes sold subprime loans, some senior borrowers have found themselves trapped in loans with mysterious, onerous terms that were never right for them in the first place. Her bill, SB660, would require any lender, broker or other financial entity recommending the purchase of a reverse mortgage to a senior to behave with "honesty, good faith and fair dealing." It's the same sensible standard that applies to insurance products for seniors - and it works.

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Feuer Introduces Three-Bill Package To Protect Seniors

tsaleen — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:45:00 GMT

California Chronicle - February 24, 2009

(Sacramento) – Assemblymember Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) has introduced three bills to protect seniors vulnerable to abuse in nursing homes and exploitation in the marketplace. AB 392 would restore funding to local Long-Term Care Ombudsman programs, ensuring that nursing home abuse cases are investigated. AB 215 would help families seeking a nursing home for a loved one by requiring skilled nursing facilities prominently to post quality of care ratings. AB 329 would give new rights to seniors contemplating reverse mortgages.

"Especially in this economy, we need to take every step we can to protect seniors who may be at serious risk of abuse or exploitation," said Feuer. "These bills address problems exacerbated by the recession and state funding cuts."

AB 392 helps reverse the damage created by the Governor´s veto of $3.8 million in funding for local Long Term Care Ombudsman programs. These programs are the only advocacy services that protect vulnerable residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities from abuse and neglect; they conduct unannounced monitor visits and investigate thousands of reports of abuse annually. This bill would restore funding by using existing penalties paid by long-term care facilities that fail to comply with federal and state laws. These penalty accounts may be used for any activity that directly benefits facility residents, including funding increases in Ombudsman services; therefore, AB 392 has no General Fund costs.

"California´s senior citizens not only bear a disproportionate share of reductions in health and home care services, but they are particularly vulnerable to abuse," said Assemblymember Dave Jones (D-Sacramento), a joint author of the bill. This is not the time to rollback the oversight and protections provided by the Long-Term Care Senior Ombudsman program, or to silence the voices of seniors. I am pleased to join Assemblymember Feuer in authoring AB 392 and speaking out to protect funding for this invaluable program." AB 215 requires long-term health care facilities that accept Medicare or Medicaid to post the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) star rating in a visible, public location. Overall federal CMS ratings are based on health inspection results, staffing levels, and quality measures. The public can obtain this information through the CMS Nursing Care Compare website (www.medicare.gov/NHCompare/home.asp). A posted rating would provide more information to patients, residents, and visitors to nursing homes who are unaware of the ratings or who have limited internet access.

"The amount of information available to those who are seeking long-term care can be overwhelming to the average consumer. It´s important that we take steps to eliminate unnecessary confusion in an already difficult and emotional process," said Assemblymember Cameron Smyth (R-Santa Clarita), joint author of the bill.

AB 329 establishes the Reverse Mortgage Elder Protection Act of 2009, and addresses the recent expansion in the reverse mortgage market for seniors. Reverse mortgages allow seniors to convert home equity into cash payments or supplemental income, potentially providing benefits to those who own property but have little in savings or income. Unfortunately, they are not always in the best interest of seniors. This bill would establish a new fiduciary duty between reverse mortgage sales people and consumers; strengthen counseling requirements; and extend the period in which a consumer may cancel a reverse mortgage contract.

Assemblymember Feuer has fought for nursing home patient rights since serving as Executive Director of Bet Tzedek Legal Services, the House of Justice. During his tenure, Bet Tzedek provided free legal representation to more than 50,000 primarily aging or disabled clients on elder abuse, Holocaust restitution, slum housing conditions, access to medical care, consumer fraud and other critical issues.

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AMERICANS OVER 60 TODAY’S ECONOMIC STATE WORST EVER

tsaleen — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:04:00 GMT

Metlife - September 20, 2008

When asked to compare the current economy to similar situations in the past, 53% of Americans over the age of 60 said today’s economic conditions are worse than those they have experienced in the past, even though unemployment and inflation rates have been higher within the last 30 years. A new poll from the MetLife Mature Market Institute®, conducted by Harris Interactive®, reports that an overwhelming majority of this group is feeling the pinch in today’s current economy and that it has affected the way they spend their money, but not their plans for retirement.

In Feeling the Economic Pinch: A MetLife Poll of Americans 60+, 87% of respondents said they are curtailing their spending; 70% are cutting back on essentials like food and transportation. Eighty-two percent are spending less on non-essentials like dining out and vacation. In addition, 17% report having had to provide more financial assistance to family and/or friends as a result of the current economy.

“There is no doubt that older Americans are being adversely affected by the current situation,” said Sandra Timmermann, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. “A closer look at the findings shows that women are tightening their spending habits more than men, and not surprisingly those who earn less are cutting back even more.

“While there have been serious economic downturns in the past, it is clear that this group of people over 60 feel particularly vulnerable during this time of their lives. Yet, it appears that they are not, at this point, changing their longer range retirement plans.” Of those who are working, 73% said they would not postpone their planned retirement date because of the current economy. Only 16% of all respondents are withdrawing or plan to withdraw more from their retirement funds than they originally planned.

Timmermann acknowledged it's a good sign that people are not panicking by withdrawing their retirement funds, but warned that a reassessment of finances and long term planning may be necessary since people can live 30 or more years in retirement.

“We discovered an increased appreciation of Social Security among one in five of the respondents. It is apparent from this data that, as a result of a volatile economy, many older Americans better understand the importance of guaranteed income,” said Timmermann. The MetLife Retirement Income Decisions Study: The Silent Generation Speaks, released in 2005, found that people in their 60s gravitate toward annuities and investments that provide lifetime income, of which Social Security is an example.

Ninety-two percent of those polled classify the current state of the economy as “headed for” or “in the midst of” a downturn and 50% predict the poor economy will linger for an additional 12 months or longer. Sixty-three percent of those polled hold Washington responsible. Democrats polled are far more negative about economic prospects compared to their Republican counterparts with 62% of the Democrats believing that the downturn will last more than 12 months, compared with 34% of Republicans.

Other findings include the following:

• With regard to increased fuel costs, a contributing factor in the economy, 60% of those polled are cutting back on auto transportation.

• More women have cut back on essentials than men (75% vs. 63%).

• Ninety-four percent of those who earn less than $35,000 a year have cut back on spending, compared to 72% of those who earn $75,000 or more a year.

• Twenty-three percent say they are currently taking more positive action over finances (i.e. reading more about finances, seeking help from a financial advisor).

• Fifty percent say what keeps them up at night is money-related.

See the whole study...

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63-year-old sues AARP for age discrimination

tsaleen — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:16:00 GMT

MSNBC - August 19, 2008

LANSING, Mich. - AARP, the national advocacy group for older Americans, is being accused of age discrimination.

Bonita Brady, a 63-year-old from Michigan, says the group passed her over for a series of jobs because she was too old, despite excellent job reviews.

She joined AARP in Chicago in 1996 as a health representative. She also worked for AARP in Washington before moving to the Lansing office in 2007.

Brady says she lost her job in a reorganization and was passed over for nine vacancies. She sued last week in federal court in Michigan and is seeking more than $25,000.

A message seeking comment was left with AARP lawyer Julie Badel in Chicago.

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Housing Bill Has Something for Nearly Everyone

tsaleen — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 03:50:00 GMT

The New York Times - July 25, 2008

If you are ignoring the housing bailout bill because you think it benefits only troubled homeowners, you may miss out on a windfall.

The bill, expected to be passed by the Senate in the next few days and then signed by President Bush, does offer incentives to certain overextended borrowers and their mortgage lenders.

But it also includes many handouts to first-time homebuyers, longtime homeowners, returning veterans and senior citizens seeking to tap their home equity without getting hit with big fees. Millions of people have the potential to benefit in some way.

Huge numbers of people buying homes for the first time, for instance, will be eligible for what amounts to an interest-free loan from the government. Meanwhile, older Americans will now be able to borrow more and possibly pay less for reverse mortgages that allow them tap the equity in their homes.

Whether larding up the bill with all these benefits is good for taxpayers is a debate for another part of the newspaper. But there is no shame in taking advantage of what is offered. In fact, you would be foolish not to.

Here are some of the new benefits:

RENEGOTIATING MORTGAGES Part of the bill is devoted to the creation of a program that may allow some people to cancel their old mortgage loans and replace them with new fixed-rate loans lasting at least 30 years. The amount of the new loans would be no more than 90 percent of what their property is actually worth now.

So who is eligible? You need to have originated your troubled loan or loans on or before Jan. 1, 2008. The loans in question must be on your primary residence. Vacation homes and investment properties are ineligible. You will also need to verify your income, which many borrowers did not have to do in recent years.

Reverse Mortgage Counseling Industry Leaders Announce Launch of National Housing Counseling Association

jberman — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 03:48:00 GMT

BusinessWire, March 24th, 2008

A coalition of reverse mortgage counseling agencies and elder care experts announced today a collaboration to launch the National Housing Counseling Association (NHCA).

NHCA will act as an independent organization to support HUD-approved 501(c)(3) housing counseling agencies in the delivery of reverse mortgage counseling services. Its principle goal is to support education initiatives and provide resources to improve the operational efficiency, consistency and financial sustainability of reverse mortgage counseling programs nationwide.

The association will build on existing best practices in the reverse mortgage counseling industry and will offer membership to all HUD-approved housing counseling agencies that provide reverse mortgage counseling and are prepared to meet HUD Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) counseling network standards and abide by the NHCA code of ethics.

“The association was created to ensure the availability and quality of reverse mortgage counseling for seniors,” said Chuck Stanley, NHCA spokesperson. “With the near exhaustion of available HUD funds for HECM counseling, and the delay in HUD's borrower pay regulation, many counseling agencies are being forced to cut back on counseling services. NHCA has developed an industry-wide approach to accessing additional grant funds without the perceived conflict of interest associated with direct contributions by individual reverse mortgage lenders. We believe this approach will be a win-win for all reverse mortgage counseling agencies, their clients and the reverse mortgage industry as a whole.”

Participating agencies will have the benefit of accessing industry-leading "DirectConnect Reverse Mortgage Counseling Services™" software, which will be used to gather counseling session data for use in grant reimbursement and research purposes.

Jay Greenberg, executive vice president of the National Council on Aging (NCOA), added, “We are excited to assist the NHCA in increasing financial transparency and maximizing the value of the counseling and education experience for seniors.”

NHCA is currently endorsed by many HUD-approved counseling agencies, and agencies from each of the credit counseling trade organizations, American Association of Debt Management Organizations, Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies, and the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. These participating agencies are responsible for providing more than 80 percent of reverse mortgage counseling sessions done today: By Design Financial Solutions, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Forsyth County, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of San Francisco, National Foundation for Debt Management, Lutheran Social Services of Duluth, Springboard and Money Management International (and its 120 CCCS branch offices throughout the country).

About National Housing Counseling Association

NHCA pledges help and support the delivery of high quality counseling to seniors, ensure the delivery of consistent, reliable counseling services meeting the business needs of lenders, and develop a sustainable source of revenue for counseling agencies to offset the cost of providing this much needed service. To learn more, or join the association, contact NHCA at info@nhcounselingassociation.org.

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For Love and a Little Money

jberman — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 01:45:00 GMT

The New York Times, October 23rd, 2007

BY the time Frederick A. O. Schwarz Jr. retired from Cravath, Swain & Moore in 2002, he was financially set. He was already an author, he already had a distinguished track record in public service and philanthropy and, of course, he was the great-grandson of a toy magnate.

So when Fritz Schwarz — the name he greatly prefers — joined the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law School, he seriously considered volunteering his services. He decided against it, and negotiated a salary, albeit one below what a starting lawyer makes.

He never got a raise, and last year, when the Brennan Center ran into a budget crunch, he gave up his pay. But in principle, if no longer in principal, he thinks the salary made sense. “An organization and a person are simply more committed to each other when the person is paid,” he said.

Clearly, Mr. Schwarz has bought into the concept of paid volunteerism. The phrase may sound oxymoronic, but an ever-growing number of retirees and nonprofit executives say it is an apt description of the way modern retirees view nonprofit work. And while no one has gathered statistics on the tendency, experts say there is a good chance that the automatic link between doing good and working for nothing has been permanently severed.

“People used to say, ‘Here I am, what do you need done?’ ” said Deborah Russell, director of work-force issues for AARP. “Today’s retirees say, ‘Here’s what I do well, how can you use it, and what will you pay?’ ”

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Working in Retirement: Consider the advantages to paid or volunteer work during your retirement at NewRetirement.com

Peace Corps, early retirees make a good match

jberman — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 01:17:00 GMT

Salem Statesman-Journal, October 11th, 2007

A top Peace Corps official will visit the Mid-Valley next week in hopes of recruiting more 50-plus-year-olds to volunteer overseas. She’s coming to the right place.

Marion and Polk counties have thousands of retirees with solid skills in public service and many good years to give back to others. That’s just what the Peace Corps needs, says Jody Olsen, the deputy director who will be speaking in Salem on Tuesday.

A few mature volunteers always have served alongside the many 20somethings in Peace Corps. Among the best-known was President Jimmy Carter’s mother, Lillian, who joined at the age of 68 in the 1960s. Now the Peace Corps wants to double its older volunteers from 5 percent to 10 percent of the nearly 8,000 men and women currently serving.

This makes sense for the 46-year-old organization and for local residents, especially the many Mid-Valley residents who’ve taken early retirement through PERS or other programs. A two-year stint in the Peace Corps would be an antidote to the job-weariness that led many to pack it in.

Teaching, agriculture, the environment, information technology and health are some of the most-requested job skills in the 139 countries where Peace Corps volunteers serve. Those are just the kind of skills that local school, state, city and county retirees possess.

Imagine taking a career’s worth of know-how and problem-solving to a new place where it’s desperately needed. In many cultures, age is more valued than in America.

Bob Arias of Dallas, a former Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia and country director in Argentina and Uruguay, says, “You spend a couple of years giving back; you see yourself in a different environment. I have seen 80-year-old volunteers come back looking like they’re 60.”

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Working in Retirement: Consider the advantages to paid or volunteer work during your retirement at NewRetirement.com

Bill for retiring Boomers derailed

jberman — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 02:02:00 GMT

SFGate.com, July 6th, 2007

Insurance companies derailed a bill Tuesday that would have required them to develop rules about selling annuities to persons over 65 years old.

The measure by Sen. Jack Scott, D-Pasadena, was scheduled to be debated by the Assembly Insurance Committee but the author of a rival bill sponsored by the insurance industry made a motion to send Scott's bill to ''interim study'' -- a polite term for killing the measure for the remainder of the legislative session.

The committee approved the motion. Scott said they could conduct the study without him.

''Yes, the insurers would like to send this bill to interim study because that means continuation of the status quo,'' Scott said in a statement.

Scott has been trying for three years to create rules that would prevent seniors from inadvertently buying annuities that do not pay off for a long time or carry significant penalties for early withdrawal of funds.

He wants to require the insurance industry to ask questions of seniors about their financial situation and tax status before selling them an annuity which might not be right for them.

CHP searching for a few good retirees

jberman — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 02:05:00 GMT

Inside Bay Area, July 5th, 2007

Retired college professor and helicopter pilot J.D. Perrizo was inspired after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

"I wanted to do something for the country," he said.

So when the Dublin office of the California Highway Patrol was recruiting seniors to join the department's senior volunteer program, the now-68-year-old applied.

Six years later, Perrizo is still a volunteer and calls his experience educational and rewarding.

The CHP is again looking for a few good seniors 55 or older who can volunteer their time helping with tasks that will provide officers more patrol time.

A recruitment fair and open house are scheduled for July 12. The event is meant to answer any questions the public mayhave and to distribute applications, Officer Steve Creel said.

"We're looking for people who have time to donate to the program and have an interest in giving back to the community," Creel said.

The Dublin CHP office has 13 volunteers right now. Due to the number of community activities the office will be involved with in the upcoming year, they are looking for about 20 more, volunteer Bill Sliney said.

"Volunteers spend about half their time in the office ... and the other half outside," he said. "We do seat belt (enforcement) events, the CHiPs for Kids program, the (annual) Sobriety Challenge; we do two golf tournaments. All of this is to support the public relations activities of the CHP."

Creel said the department matches volunteers' interests with their tasks. For example, someone who wants to spend more time outside of the office would get to transport patrol cars to be worked on or elsewhere — saving officers hours.

The goal for the volunteers is to take some of their administrative workload off of the officers.

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Latest Capitol session good for senior citizens

jberman — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 02:16:00 GMT

Orange County News, July 3rd, 2007

The increasing senior population affects Texas in many ways and the Texas legislature knows it and they passed a bevy of bills in answer to the coming surge of seniors.

Two sessions ago, Texas faced a huge budget shortfall.

The Legislature scrambled to make ends meet, cutting budgets and consolidating state agencies. Advocates for seniors worried that services would be cut just as the baby boomers entered the ranks of senior citizens."

Two major factors came together this year.

Those factors were a budget surplus and a concerted advocacy effort by the Texas Silver-Haired Legislature and other senior advocates to raise legislators' awareness of key senior issues.

That effort required the TSHL to track more than 200 bills and persistently advocate for and testify on the 33 bills passed.

TSHL members expressed early concerns about the impact of previous sessions' cuts on the lives of senior citizens and then we got busy putting together ideas and suggestions for the 80th Texas Legislature to address those senior issues.

The Silver-Haired Legislature's top priority this session was to advocate for legislation to extend last year's property tax break to included senior's homesteads and we did it. It passed."

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Calif. Wants Retirees to Become Teachers

jberman — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 07:57:00 GMT

KABC-TV Los Angeles, June 8th, 2007

Seeking to offset a shortage of educators in California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger kicked off a program Friday to urge businesses to encourage their retirees to become teachers.

"It's critical that we take action now and get enough qualified and experienced teachers into our classrooms as soon as possible," the governor said at Friday's unveiling of the EnCorps Teachers Program at Roosevelt High School.

"We must make sure California's students have a strong foundation and are well-prepared with the skills they need to take on the challenges of the 21st century," he said "We want to make the EnCorps Teachers Program a model for the rest of the nation on how we can creatively work together and end the teacher shortage in California."

The governor wants the state to spend $12 million to help private companies recruit, train and place employees who want to become teachers after retirement.

Led by former Paramount Studios chief Sherry Lansing, EnCorps' goal is to recruit 2,000 teacher candidates over the next two years.

All recruits would go through the same credentialing as any other new teacher.

Businesses such as IBM, Qualcomm, Edison International, Chevron, Ares Management, City National Bank and East West Bank have pledged to recruit and counsel retirees as they transition into teaching and provide as much as $15,000 in financial support to cover initial expenses, including tuition, books, testing and background security checks.

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Curbing Global Warming Made Easy

jberman — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 04:48:00 GMT

Editor's note: Consider this one of the many possibilities for the use of the money from a reverse mortgage.

E-Wire, April 18th, 2007

By using reverse mortgages for investing in solar and other alternative energy we could rapidly transition away from CO2 emitting energy sources at the home and work place. Congress should immediately enact Clean Energy Reverse Mortgage legislation and fulfill it's duty of protecting our people, our country and planet.

A conventional Reverse Mortgage is now currently available to home owners over 62 up to $300,000. A Clean Energy Reverse Mortgage could be available to home as well as commercial property owners. A loan of $25,000 would make the transition to clean energy very attractive to home owners.

Not only would property owners help to curb global warming on an individual level , they would also experience a jump in net worth of between $20,000 to $30,000 beyond the cost of solar panels or other alternative energy. Home owners would see a dramatic reduction in their utility bills. Their homes would also appreciate an estimated $20,000 if they saved at least $1000 a year on their energy costs, which they should easily be able to do. There are also state and federal tax rebate rebate incentives which in some state amount to close to $9,000. The other great attraction to reverse mortgages is that it requires no money down and no payments until the property is sold.

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TV network aimed at retirees

jberman — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 05:53:00 GMT

Rutland Herald, September 19th, 2006

The booming retirement market is about to have a new source of information available on television. John Erickson, an innovator in retirement communities, is preparing to launch "Retirement Living," a new television network designed for people 62 and older.

Baltimore's Erickson, founder and CEO of Erickson Retirement Communities, has dubbed the network with "TV Finally Grows Up."

Production has begun, and plans call for going "on air" sometime during September, according to Mel Tansill, senior director of public affairs for Erickson Retirement Communities. Details on distribution are still being finalized, he says. Programming will air initially on Comcast stations in the New England and mid-Atlantic markets, with a nationwide rollout to follow.

Some of the shows planned for the network include:

Amazing Seniors: A one-hour program that tells stories about ordinary individuals and the extraordinary lives they lead. Stories will focus on the creative lives that older Americans lead as artists, athletes, leaders and more.

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Retirees' toil in soil reaps honor

jberman — Fri, 23 Jun 2006 03:30:00 GMT

Chicago Sun-Times, June 21st, 2006

Retirees Espie and Don Nelson aren't spending their golden years on the golf course.

Most every day you'll find them strolling around a different sort of greenery -- a 37-acre prairie along Lily Cache Creek that they purchased and are painstakingly restoring in Plainfield, two miles from their home.

That work is the main reason they're being honored next month by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, where habitat restoration coordinator Mike Redmer describes the Nelsons as "the ultimate volunteers."

Over the past decade the couple also has put in thousands of hours at the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, Morton Arboretum and Will County forest preserves, Redmer said.

A few years ago the Nelsons bought the Plainfield plot from Espie's brothers, who had farmed it since the late 1950s.