Reverse Mortgage Alternate Contact
Our reverse mortgage program requires you to name at least one alternate contact. Here is who that person is, when they would be called and what they will never be told.
What an alternate contact is
An alternate contact is a person the lender can communicate with if it cannot reach you.
- Our reverse mortgage program requires at least one alternate contact person and their contact information.
- Under HUD rules, the lender asks you to name this person before or at closing.
- The alternate contact is there so the lender has someone to communicate with if it cannot reach you for any reason, including death or incapacitation.
- The requirement exists solely for your benefit.
- No sensitive information will ever be released to your alternate contact.
- Borrowers on the same loan cannot be alternate contacts for one another.
A backup point of contact
Your details stay private
Called only when urgent
Listed on your application
Entered in the HUD system
Separate from signing authority
When Your Contact Gets Called
The alternate contact is called only when every other way of reaching you directly has been tried and an urgent issue needs attention.
Our reverse mortgage program contacts your alternate contact only when all other methods of reaching you directly have been exhausted and an urgent issue needs attention. Under HUD rules, if the lender cannot reach you for any reason, including death or incapacitation, it must communicate with the alternate individual you named.
Absolutely no sensitive information will ever be released to the alternate contact person. A person who is not a borrower but is allowed to discuss your loan is an authorized third party. HUD requires the servicer to keep proof of that authority, such as a signed authorization from you, a power of attorney, an order of guardianship or other legal documentation.
After closing, the servicer must get an annual certification that the home is still your principal residence. It can be done by hard copy, electronically or verbally. The servicer must also advise you to report absences from the home of more than two months.
Why choose Saxton for setting up your alternate contact
This page is for borrowers choosing an alternate contact, and for adult children helping a parent think through that choice.
Named Before Or At Closing
HUD has the lender ask you to name an alternate contact before or at closing, and leaves that choice to you. Our reverse mortgage program goes further and requires at least one.
Your Privacy Comes First
Absolutely no sensitive information will ever be released to your alternate contact. Naming someone does not open your loan file to them.
Your Servicer Answers You
When you ask, HUD requires the servicer to provide mortgage information and arrange an individual consultation. Your alternate contact is called only when every other way of reaching you directly has been tried and an urgent issue needs attention.
Authority Takes Paperwork
For the servicer to work with an authorized third party, HUD requires documentation such as a signed authorization from you, a power of attorney or an order of guardianship.
Power Of Attorney Can Sign
Under HUD rules, you can name an attorney-in-fact under a power of attorney to sign documents for you at closing. Our reverse mortgage program requires that person to attend counseling. If you are legally competent, you must also attend counseling and sign the counseling certificate and initial application yourself.
Court-Appointed Guardians Can Sign
A court-appointed conservator or guardian may sign any necessary documents for a borrower who lacks legal competency. Our reverse mortgage program needs the complete guardianship papers, and the court must approve moving forward with the reverse mortgage.
Hear From Homeowners Like You
Frequently Asked Questions
Borrowers and their families ask these questions most often about the alternate contact.
Yes, in our reverse mortgage program. At least one alternate contact person and their contact information is required. It is a lender requirement that exists solely for the borrower’s benefit.
No. Absolutely no sensitive information will ever be released to the alternate contact person. For the servicer to discuss your loan with someone on your behalf, HUD requires documentation of their authority, such as a signed authorization from you or a power of attorney.
Only when all other methods of reaching you directly have been exhausted and an urgent issue needs attention. HUD rules cover a lender that cannot reach a borrower for any reason, including death or incapacitation.
No. Borrowers on the same loan cannot be alternate contacts for one another. That includes a spouse who is also a borrower on the loan.
The alternate contact is someone outside the loan, because borrowers cannot be alternate contacts for one another. Whoever you name will not receive sensitive information about your loan. If you have a specific person in mind, tell us and we will check how it fits our program.
No. An alternate contact is someone the lender can communicate with when it cannot reach you, and no sensitive information is released to them. A power of attorney names an attorney-in-fact who can sign documents for you at closing. When the servicer communicates with an authorized third party, it must keep documentation of that person’s authority.
List the person and their contact information on your reverse mortgage application, Fannie Mae Form 1009. A separate alternate contact form is only needed when that information is not on the application. The lender enters it in HERMIT, HUD’s HECM servicing platform.
Find out what you qualify for
Tell us who you would like to name as your alternate contact, and we will check how it fits our program.
Get Pre-Qualified- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, FHA and housing resources
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, FHA mortgage insurance premiums
Loan amounts, rates, terms, and eligibility are subject to credit approval, asset and income verification, appraisal, and program guidelines. Program availability varies by state. Not all applicants will qualify. Saxton Mortgage, LLC is an Equal Housing Lender.