Must Sell Home to Repay Reverse Mortgage

Truth: You don’t have to sell your home — but the loan does need to be repaid once you no longer live there

Here’s how it really works:

With a reverse mortgage, you keep full ownership of your home. The title stays in your name, and you’re free to live there for the rest of your life — as long as you meet the basic loan requirements (like paying property taxes, homeowners insurance, and maintaining the home). There’s no requirement to sell during your lifetime.

The loan only becomes due when:

• You move out of the home permanently

• You sell the home voluntarily

• Or you pass away

At that point, the loan is repaid — most commonly through the sale of the home, but that’s just one option. Your heirs or estate can also choose to:

• Refinance the reverse mortgage into a traditional loan

• Pay off the balance with other funds and keep the home

• Sell the home themselves, repay the loan, and keep any remaining equity

The key point is: selling the home is not required by the lender — it’s simply the most common and convenient way to repay the loan when the time comes.

Learn more about eligibility requirements for a reverse mortgage, situations where a reverse mortgage is best used, and common myths around reverse mortgage that we debunk with facts