Reverse mortgage industry urged to elevate standards, shift perceptions at NRMLA meeting

At the annual National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA) meeting, financial advisor and trainer Ryan Ponsford urged reverse mortgage professionals to strengthen their credibility and collaboration with financial advisors, saying the industry’s future depends on shifting perceptions and elevating professional standards.

Ponsford, drawing on nearly three decades in the financial services sector, opened with anecdotes about industry skepticism. “When I was first introduced to reverse mortgages, my reaction was, ‘You take advantage of old people and steal kids’ homes.’ But as I learned more, I realized there’s more nuance, and a real opportunity,” Ponsford said.

He now works with institutions and advisors to integrate home equity into retirement planning, but says the industry has a “perception problem.”

“This industry needs some truth and some grace for itself and for the community [of] people we’re trying to impact, because there are enough issues to go around. My personal opinion [is that] the financial services community is committing financial malpractice by not incorporating housing wealth into retirement planning,” he told the audience.

He identified several persistent barriers that have held back the broader adoption of reverse mortgages: lack of education, uncertainty about broker-dealer policies, reputational challenges and being deemed a risky product for elderly clients.

Ponsford also noted that many advisors still view reverse mortgages as “loans of last resort” and, to remedy this perception, professionals in the space need to move beyond selling products and instead approach advisors as peers focused on risk management and long-term financial outcomes.

“I think we have to elevate our industry to be aligned with them,” he added.

How to align, according to Ponsford

Ponsford said part of addressing industry perceptions involves educating both advisors and clients on the evolving role of home equity in retirement planning. While progress has been made, it’s not enough.

“Just in the last five years in the advisory community, there used to be a lot of resistance,” Ponsford said. “I’m not getting that anymore…now, they’ll tolerate listening, and they get curious.”

Central to Ponsford’s address was positioning home equity access as a risk mitigation tool in retirement planning rather than a form of debt or a product for desperate situations. “Retirement is a game of cash flow,” he said. “Most traditional ways of accessing home equity don’t address the risks retirees face.”

Stereotyping clientele, such as assuming the product is only for financially distressed borrowers, will not help to align with firms or customers. “There are millions of qualified households who could benefit from this,” he said.

Become the expert and flip the narrative

Ponsford encouraged his audience to position themselves as subject-matter experts rather than salespeople, offering education and collaboration instead of persuasion. “Stop asking for referrals; ask for introductions,” he said. “An effective introduction is a transfer of trust.”

Approach is everything, Ponsford said. For one example, he said lenders and originators must focus less on price and more on value. “Price is an issue in the absence of value,” he said. “If you talk about this as a refinance, it sounds expensive. But if you talk about giving someone the ability to stay in their home for life, that’s value.”

Aside from providing tangible value, Ponsford encouraged professionals to approach advisors with a “risk mitigation” mindset, presenting the reverse mortgage as a tool that can prevent clients from having to delay retirement, cut expenses, take on more investment risk — “or die sooner,” as he put it bluntly.

Ryan outlined traits advisors look for in partners: credibility, reliability, empathy and putting clients’ interests first. “Are you available? Do you know anything inside and out? You connect with them, but [do] they trust you? You put their interest before your own? Can you say that about yourself that you are all those things?” he asked.