Reverse mortgages can help prevent a borrower from outliving their money in retirement, and this financial security lends valuable peace of mind. Retirees shouldn’t have to worry about housing, health care, or where they’ll get their next meal once they stop working. A reverse mortgage can be used to supplement a limited fixed income. The resulting increase in cash flow can make it easier to afford the cost of living with less financial stress. Although the main goal is financial freedom, borrowers can use the loan proceeds however they like—whether that may be to renovate their home, finance a large purchase, pay off existing debt or cover unexpected medical bills. A reverse mortgage also enables borrowers to age in place, so they can live out their retirement years in the comfort of their own home. They allow you to access the wealth you’ve accumulated in home equity, without having to sell or vacate the property. Reverse mortgages can help people live better in retirement in many different ways. Since 1989, when reverse mortgages were launched as the home equity conversion mortgage (HECM)—a program insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)—there have been over one million reverse mortgages originated in the USA.