Mountain Views News          Saturday, July 28, 2012

20

THE GOOD LIFE

11

 Mountain Views News Saturday July 28, 2012

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

UNDERSTANDING REVERSE MORTGAGES 

Dear Savvy Senior:

Where can I get reliable, unbiased information on reverse mortgages? My wife and I are thinking 
about getting one but want to do some research 
first. 

Need Money

Dear Need:

For seniors that are house rich but cash poor, 
a reverse mortgage is a viable option, but 
there’s a lot to know and consider to be sure 
it’s a good choice for you. Here are some tips 
and tools to help you research this complex financial product. 

Let’s start with a quick review. A reverse mortgage is a loan that lets older homeowners 
convert part of the equity in their home into cash that doesn’t have to be paid back as long 
as they live there. 

To be eligible you must be age 62 or older, own your home (or owe only a small balance) and 
currently be living there. 

You can receive the cash either as a lump sum, a line of credit, regular monthly checks or a 
combination of these. And with a reverse mortgage, you, not the bank, own the house, so 
you’re still responsible for property taxes, insurance and repairs. 

Currently, 99 percent of all reverse mortgages offered today are Home Equity Conversion 
Mortgages (HECM), which are backed by the Federal Housing Administration. 

Repayment is due when you or the last borrower dies, sells the place or lives elsewhere for 12 
months. Then you or your heirs will have to pay off the loan (which includes the money you 
borrowed plus accrued interest and fees) either with the proceeds from selling the place, or 
if you want to keep the house, with money from another source. 

Educational Resources

To get a better handle on reverse mortgages and how they work, there are several excellent 
resources you can turn to for reliable information, but you’re going to need access to the 
Internet utilize them. 

To get started, the National Council on Aging recently created a free new website called the 
Home Equity Advisor that’s designed to help you think through the best way to leverage 
your home – a reverse mortgage isn’t your only option. 

Just go to homeequityadvisor.org and click on their “Quick Check” tool which will ask you a 
series of questions about your personal and household situation to define exactly what you 
might need or want. Then, based on your answers, you’ll receive an individualized report offering 
information, tools, and consumer advice on a range of possible solutions that includes 
reverse mortgages and other alternatives.

If you find that you are a good candidate for a reverse mortgage, your next stop is at reversemortgage.
org, a new consumer website created by the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders 
Association. 

This site offers lots of educational information including “Your Road Map” which will help 
guide you through all the features of reverse mortgages and the process of obtaining one. 

It also has a calculator to estimate how much you’d be eligible to receive from a reverse 
mortgage, and offers has a comprehensive directory of licensed HUD-approved mortgage 
lenders, banks, and credit unions that offer reverse mortgage loans in your state.

Get Counseling

Another important resource to help you understand the pros and cons of a reverse mortgage 
and how it would work in your particular situation is through counseling. 

In fact, because reverse mortgages are such complicated products, the federal government 
requires that all reverse mortgage borrowers receive counseling through a HUD approved 
independent counseling agency before they take out a HECM loan.

Counseling can be done in person or over the phone and some agencies today provide it for 
free or at a minimal fee. Some locations charge around $125. To locate counseling agencies 
in your area, visit hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hecm/hecmhome.cfm or call 800-569-4287. 

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.
org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy 
Senior” book.

July Birthdays

Anthony Gheezo, Joanne Gheezo, Betty Hansen, 
Beverly Turko, Vivian Abrams, Shahrzad 
Arzani, Eunice Banis, Cindy Barnard, Christine 
Durfort, Dorothy Montgomery, Beth Pancoska, Janet 
Swanson, Linda Thunes, BarbaraWatson, 


JULY ACTIVITIES

Senior Programs have returned to the Hart 
Park House enior Center, 222 W. Sierra 
Madre Blvd. in Memorial Park - Come by and 
see the changes!!


Meals-On-Wheels

Mondays: City Hall & Lunch Café 

12 noon: Intervale Lunch Café: Come enjoy 
a hot meal with others. Donation for 
seniors (60+) of $2.00; visitors $3.75. Call 
355-0256 to make your daily reservation.

Tuesdays: 

 FREE blood pressure checks by Methodist 
Hospital Nurse; 11 am to 12 noon.

1:30 pm to 3:30 pm: BINGO; cards are 
only 25 cents each so stop by & play

5:15 pm to 6:45 pm: Yoga; $6.00 - 50 
& over. Please call 355-5278 for more 
information

Wednesdays:

11 –11:45 am: Balance Class with Teryl. 
FREE class designed to improve balance 
& refresh the joints

12 noon: Intervale Lunch Café; daily reservations 
needed 355-0256

2nd Wednesday of the month: FREE Legal 
Consultations: 10-11:30 am. Appointments 
call 355-7394

Wii Wednesday - 1:00 pm or call the senior 
desk at 355-7394 to arrange another 
time & day to learn how to play. No previous 
experience or skills required and it is 
great exercise.

Thursdays:

1:00 to 3:30 pm: Game Day. Join us for 
Poker and more. Wii - 1:00 pm or call the 
senior desk at 355-7394 to arrange another 
time & day to learn how to play. No 
previous experience or skills required and 
it is great exercise. Please call for more 
information.

Fridays: Intervale Lunch Café; daily reservations 
needed 355-0256

1:00 pm to 1:45 pm: Strength Training 
with Lisa Brandley. FREE class of stretching 
with light hand weights while you sit.

Saturdays: 11:30 am: Senior Club brown 
bag lunch and BINGO at 12:30 pm. 


Meals are delivered to home-
bound seniors by volunteer drivers 
through the YWCA Intervale 
Lunch Program M-F (with frozen meals for the 
weekend.) 

 Call the YWCA at (626) 214-9460 for more 
information. 


LUNCH & LEARN 

Join the Senior Community Commission

at the HART PARK HOUSE

 for a FREE presentation. Lunch is available 
for a $2 donation 

Call (626) 355-0256 by 

12 noon the day before. 

DIAL - A - RIDE TICKETS

Tickets can now be purchased at:

Sierra Madre City Hall

Sierra Madre Library

NEW! 

Senior Movie Program

The Hart Park House Senior Center is starting 
a brand new monthly movie program beginning 
Wednesday, August 15. 

Each month a movie will be shown at no fee 
in the City Council Chambers located in City 
Hall.

The movie for the month of August is, 

Invasion of the Body Snatchers, filmed in our 
very own Sierra Madre! 

All patrons are encouraged to join us monthly 
and it’s a great way to beat the summer heat.

Location: City Council Chambers, 232 W. Sierra 
Madre Blvd.

Time: 1:00pm-3:00pm

Cost: Free, no charge.

*Food is not allowed in the Council Chambers

2012 EXCURSIONS

NEWPORT BAY CHARTER BOAT 
CRUISE AND LUNCH

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Departure: Charter bus leaves at 9:15am 
from the Hart Park House Senior Center

Boat Charter: 11:00am-12:30pm

Arrival: Charter bus will arrive back in Sierra 
Madre at approximately 3:00pm

Cost: $20 includes transportation and tip 
(Does not include lunch)

More Info: Call the Hart Park House Senior 
Center at 626-355-7394. The 90 minute 
tour views the entire harbor, including 
the 7 Islands of Newport Bay. The tour is 
narrated by the experienced Captain and 
Crew. You will get a chance to see celebrity 
homes, sea lions, and much

more! For more information on the cruise 
please visit their website at www.funzoneboats.
com. Lunch will be on your own 
from 12:30-2:00pm in Newport Beach. 
Please be sure to register early as space is

limited. Registration is available at the Hart 
Park House at 222 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., 
Community Recreation Center at 611 E. Sierra 
MadreBlvd. or online at www.cityofiserramadre.
com/onlineregistration.

HEALTH & FITNESS

THE JOY OF YOGA

HOW WE GROW SPIRITUALLY:


ene
The yoga code of ethics

How do we engage in the world and not get caught up in the drama? How 
do we not become entangled? Everyday, all day, there are dramas trying 
to lure us in. There are friends that are a living drama, clients that are a 
living drama, media news that is a big ‘ol drama. We can buy into drama 
and before you know it – our whole day is gone, worse yet, years of our 
lives. As yogis on the spiritual path, we must constantly remember to NOT 
buy into the drama. Oooo it’s so hard! Not to hear the gossip? Not to 
gossip ourselves? To purposefully choose what comes out of our mouths 
is a discipline. To choose not to be a slave to drama is one of the most 
challenging yet rewarding choices you can ever make.

For the yogi, spirit and nature are not separate. When we practice yoga we are discovering our true 
nature. We are discovering our soul. We start with the physical body, because that’s what we can first 
identify with. It’s our doorway in. Then we discover our own evolution. When we want to progress 
from there we must take a look at our moral and ethical awareness. The yoga tradition has a code of 
ethics. As we evolve this becomes more and more important. 

We cannot evolve spiritually without an ethical framework. To become self –realized in classical 
yoga, as in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, there are 5 yamas or principles of self -restraint. Nonviolence 
(ahimsa), truthfulness (satya), non-stealing (asteya), self -control/fidelity (brahmacharya) and non-
coveting (aparigraha).

In future articles we will explore these concepts in greater detail. In the meantime keep on the mat, 
cultivating deeper awareness within.

Namasté, René