Birmingham Business Journal - by Ty West Staff
Reverse mortgages are enjoying a surge in popularity nationally, but industry leaders say demand for the loans remains tempered in conservative areas such as Alabama.
Jim King, a partner at Birmingham's McGowin-King Mortgage LLC, said that even though reverse mortgages - which let senior homeowners convert their home equity into income and remain in their homes - aren't as common in Alabama as they are in other parts of the country, they recently have been increasing in popularity in the state.
"It's becoming more accepted," King said. "I think people in this area are pretty conservative, but as it becomes better known, more are interested in doing it."
According to statistics from the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association, 574 reverse mortgages have originated in Alabama in the current fiscal year ending Sept. 30.