Reverse Mortgages – Part 2

Tip #3 – OWNERSHIP UNDER A TRUST

Many of our elder clients have the foresight to put their property into their Revocable Trust. If this is the case, then here are the questions to be answered

• Was a copy of the correct Trust Agreement and all its Amendments provided? Sometimes the Borrower may have drawn more than one Trust. Which Trust Agreement is the last one?
• Is this the deceased parent’s trust or the Borrower’s trust or both? If you are not certain, the Escrow Officer can tell you after reviewing the preliminary report (tip #2)

Tip #4 – SUCCESSOR TRUSTEES OF THE TRUST

Is the Trust now being handled by a Surviving / Successor Trustee? All the above under Tip #3 applies, and in addition, the Escrow Officer has to ascertain that there was an Affidavit of Death of Trustee recorded already. If not, one will be prepared and the important part of this is that this form will require an original certified copy of the death certificate.

On many occasions, the Escrow Officer is handed a color copy and because it is a color copy, Borrowers assume that it is the original. That copy document will be rejected by the County Recorder’s office. To identify an original certified copy of the death certificate, feel the borders of the certificate and the two seals on each corner. The border and the seals on the certificate should feel raised and embossed.

Tip #5 – PACE AND OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL UPGRADE LOANS

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing and other types of liens that upgrade the property with, for instance, solar panels and other environmentally friendly fixtures, are loans that are placed on the property.

Sometimes it does not show as a “lien” but is actually placed on the property tax roll and paid with the property taxes. Let the Escrow Officer know if you have such a loan and provide the loan financing information. It may need to be paid off before the RM loan can go through. The Escrow Officer, upon receipt of your information and the preliminary report, will inform the Loan Officer to determine what needs to be done.

Click to Read Part 3

Rebecca Barasorda
Escrow Officer
“Driven by Service”

I speak English, Cantonese, Mandarin Chinese, Malay (Bahasa Melayu)

 rebeccab@vivaescrow.com