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Living with a Reverse Mortgage: Occupancy and Ongoing Costs

A reverse mortgage changes how a loan is repaid, but it does not eliminate the work and expense of maintaining a home. Taxes, insurance, occupancy, and the condition of the property still matter. Review those obligations with anyone who shares the home so that a temporary absence, move, or missed bill does not produce an unexpected loan problem.

The questions below use selected Consumer Financial Protection Bureau guidance, adapted and organized by Fynoptic. Source links and the dates displayed by those sources are provided at the end.

What are my responsibilities as a reverse mortgage loan borrower?

There are three main requirements that you must fulfill if you have a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), the most common type of reverse mortgage loan. If you don’t meet these requirements, you could lose your home to foreclosure.

As a reverse mortgage borrower, you have three main responsibilities:

  1. You are required to pay your property charges—such as property taxes and homeowners insurance—on time.
  2. Your home must be kept in good repair.
  3. Your home must be your principal residence.

Note: This information only applies to Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs), which are the most common type of reverse mortgage loan.

Pay your property taxes and homeowners insurance on time

Before closing on the loan your lender will do a financial assessment to determine how you will pay for your ongoing property taxes and homeowners insurance, and if applicable, flood insurance.

If your lender determines that your credit and property charge payment history and residual income are sufficient to pay future property taxes and homeowners insurance, you can choose to:

  • Pay your property charges directly, or
  • Have your servicer pay your charges by using money from your reverse mortgage funds.

If your lender determines that you need to “set aside” a portion of your loan proceeds as a reserve to pay all or some of your property taxes and homeowners insurance, your lender will either:

  • Pay your property taxes and homeowners insurance directly from the reserve when the portion set aside fully covers the estimated amounts due, or
  • Send you the money so that you can make these payments, when the portion set aside does not fully cover the estimated amounts due.

If you are unsure if loan money was set aside, check your monthly account statement or contact your lender or servicer.

If the reserve can no longer cover your property taxes or homeowners insurance, your lender will tell you.

Note: For loans that were made before April 27, 2015 lenders did not perform a financial assessment, Generally, borrowers with these loans need to budget each year to make sure their taxes and insurance are paid on time, unless arrangements were voluntarily made at the time of closing for the lender to set aside amounts to pay for these property charges.

Keep your home in good repair

After closing you must keep your home well maintained. Your lender or servicer may inspect your home’s condition if they give you notice and specify the purpose of the inspection. They also may tell you to make repairs. Generally, you have 60 days to start repairs from the day your lender or servicer told you to do so. If you cannot afford to make required repairs, reach out to your local Area Agency on Aging (AAA) to find assistance programs that may be able to help you pay for repairs. To find the nearest AAA, call (800) 677-1116 or visit eldercare.acl.gov.

Caution: Beware of contractors who approach you about getting a reverse mortgage loan to pay for repairs to your home. Learn about all your options. Do not let yourself be pressured into borrowing money for home repairs.

Live in your home as your primary residence

Your home must be your principal residence, meaning it must be where you spend the majority of the year. You can only have one principal residence at a time. With a reverse mortgage you can only be away from your home for a certain period of time.

  • If you are away for more than two months, but less than six months, and there is no co-borrower living in the home, notify your lender or servicer so that your lender knows you continue to occupy the home as your principal residence.
  • If you are away for more than six months for non-medical reasons and there is no co- borrower living in the home, your home is no longer your principal residence and your loan must be paid back or satisfied through selling the property or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. Anyone living with you will have to move out unless they are able to pay back the loan.
  • If you are away for more than 12 consecutive months in a healthcare facility such as a hospital, rehabilitation center, nursing home, or assisted living facility and there is no co-borrower living in the home, your home is no longer your principal residence and your loan must be paid back or satisfied through selling the property or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. Anyone living with you will have to move out unless they are able to pay back the loan or qualify as an Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse.
  • If there is a co-borrower in the home and you permanently move for any reason, the co-borrower may continue to live in the home and receive loan payments, so long as they continue to fulfill the reverse mortgage loan requirements.

Does having a reverse mortgage impact who can live in my home?

As long as you still live in the home, having a reverse mortgage does not change who can live with you.

Having a reverse mortgage, also known as a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), does not change who can live with you in your home, but if you die or move out of the home (including moving for medical reasons for more than 12 consecutive months), the HECM loan becomes due. This means that you and your family members or heirs will need to pay off the reverse mortgage in order to stay in the home.

The exception is if you co-borrow your HECM with your spouse (or anyone else). In this case, your co-borrower can stay in the home even if you die or move out of the home. If your spouse is not a co-borrower on the reverse mortgage, but was married to you at the time you took out the reverse mortgage, your spouse may be able to remain in the home without paying the loan balance after you die or move into a health care facility for more than 12 consecutive months if your spouse qualifies under the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s rules. For example, from the time you get the reverse mortgage, your qualifying non-borrowing spouse must continue to live in the house as their principal primary residence.

Children, relatives, or other dependents who are not co-borrowers on the reverse mortgage, or spouses who do not qualify as an Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse under HUD’s rules will have the option to pay off the HECM loan balance in order to remain in the home, which must be paid off with another source of funds.

Get help

Before you apply for any reverse mortgage loan, you and your spouse or partner work with a HUD-approved housing counselor to help you decide if a reverse mortgage is right for you. To find a HUD-approved reverse mortgage (HECM) counselor visit CFPB’s Find a housing counselor page,or call HUD's talk to housing counselor referral line at (800) 569-4287.

What happens if I have a reverse mortgage and I have to move out of my home, such as moving into a nursing home or to live with family?

Reverse mortgage loans typically must be repaid either when you move out of the home or when you die. However, you may not need to immediately pay it back if you are away from your home for more than 12 consecutive months in a healthcare facility or have a co-borrower or Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse living in the home.

If your spouse or person living with you is a co-borrower

If you move out of your home for any reason ─ such as to live in a nursing home, or downsize to a smaller house ─ and your spouse or the person living with you is a co-borrower on the reverse mortgage loan, they can stay in the home and continue to receive loan disbursements as long as they fulfill the ongoing obligations of the reverse mortgage.

If your spouse or person living with you isn’t a co-borrower

If your spouse or partner is not a co-borrower and you move someplace else for the majority of the year, the reverse mortgage loan will need to be paid back. The most common way to pay back a reverse mortgage is by selling the home, in which case your spouse or partner will have to move. If you are away from your home and in a healthcare facility such as a hospital, assisted living, nursing home, or rehabilitation center for more than 12 consecutive months, your non-borrowing spouse may be able to stay in the home without paying off the loan, depending on when you took out (“originated”) the loan. and whether they qualify as an Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse under HUD’s rules. Qualifying as an “Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse” can be difficult, so your spouse may want to consider contacting an attorney or HUD-approved housing counseling agency.

Learn more about whether your spouse can qualify as an Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse.

Note: This information only applies to Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs), which are the most common type of reverse mortgage loan.

What should I do if I have a reverse mortgage loan and I can’t pay my property taxes or homeowners insurance?

If you can’t pay your property taxes or homeowners insurance, look for help right away. Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs), the most common type of reverse mortgage loan, require that you keep current on your property taxes and homeowners insurance. Failure to pay either may lead to foreclosure.

If you are struggling to afford your taxes and homeowners insurance, here are some things you can do:

  1. There might be state and local programs that can help you keep your home. Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) generally have information about these programs. To find the nearest Area Agency on Aging call (800) 677-1116 or visit the eldercare website.
  2. A reverse mortgage housing counselor can also help you find the best option for your situation. If you can’t afford to pay your taxes and/or insurance, you should see a reverse mortgage housing counselor right away.

To learn more about what to do if you’re already behind on your tax or insurance payments.


When do I have to pay back a reverse mortgage loan?

Reverse mortgage loans typically must be repaid either when you move out of the home or when you die. However, the loan may need to be paid back sooner if the home is no longer your principal residence, you fail to pay your property taxes or homeowners insurance, or do not keep the home in good repair.

Most reverse mortgage loans are Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs). A HECM must be paid off when the last surviving borrower or Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse:

  • Dies
  • Sells their home, or
  • No longer lives in the home as their principal residence, meaning where they live for a majority of the year.

If you are away for more than 12 consecutive months in a healthcare facility such as a hospital, rehabilitation center, nursing home, or assisted living facility and there is no co-borrower living in the home, anyone living with you will have to move out unless they are able to pay back the loan or qualify as an Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse.

An “Eligible Non-Borrowing Spouse” is a term used for your spouse when they are not a co-borrower, but qualify under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) rules to stay in your home after you have died.

Learn more about what happens to your reverse mortgage after you die

Sources and further reading

The CFPB source passages are U.S. government work in the public domain. Fynoptic has selected, organized, and adapted the material for this guide, including corrections identified through the additional sources listed above. Sources accessed October 27, 2026. This use does not imply agency endorsement or affiliation.

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