1,401,176 HECM reverse mortgages insured by FHA since 1989.
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Reverse mortgage guide
Yes, you can refinance a reverse mortgage. A HECM to HECM refinance usually makes sense when your home's value has gone up, the HECM lending limit has risen, rates have dropped, or you want to add a spouse who has turned 62. HUD requires the refinance to be worth it: the increase in money available generally has to be at least five times the closing costs before counseling can be waived. You generally get credit for the upfront mortgage insurance you already paid. You can also refinance between a HECM and a proprietary (jumbo) reverse mortgage, or pay off a regular mortgage with a new HECM.
Can you refinance a reverse mortgage? Yes. Should you? That's the better question, and the honest answer is "sometimes."
A refinance means new closing costs, a new appraisal, and new paperwork. It's worth it when it puts real money or real protection in your hands. It's not worth it when the main person it helps is whoever is collecting the fees. This page walks through both sides, in the order I'd walk you through them at the kitchen table.
Have your most recent reverse mortgage statement handy. It has almost everything I need to tell you whether a refinance is worth a closer look.
This is the most common reason. If your home has gone up in value since your loan closed, a new HECM can be based on the new value. That can open up a lot more money, especially if your current loan was capped by a lower value.
The HECM limit is set every year and has risen a lot over time. If your home was worth more than the limit when you got your HECM, a higher limit today may mean more money available. See Lending Limits.
The amount you can access is based partly on the age of the youngest borrower or eligible non-borrowing spouse. Every year you get older, the share of your home's value you can reach generally goes up, though rates, home values and HUD's tables can change too.
A lower rate can mean both a bigger principal limit and slower balance growth. See today's reverse mortgage rates. Rates alone are rarely enough to justify a refinance, though. They usually work alongside a higher value or limit.
A fixed-rate HECM is a single lump sum. If you took a fixed rate years ago and now want a line of credit, a refinance into an adjustable HECM may give you one, with an unused balance that can grow over time. See Comparing Fixed and Adjustable Reverse Mortgages.
If your spouse wasn't old enough to be on the loan when it closed, and has now turned 62, a refinance can put both of you on the new HECM as borrowers. That means either of you can keep drawing money after the other is gone, which matters a lot to some couples. See the Non-Borrowing Spouse guide.
This is especially worth a look if your loan's case number was assigned before August 4, 2014, when the stronger protections for non-borrowing spouses began.
HUD doesn't want borrowers refinanced over and over just to generate fees. That practice even has a name in the industry: churning. So HUD built in a test.
On a HECM to HECM refinance, the increase in your principal limit, meaning the new loan's starting principal limit minus your current principal limit, is compared with the total closing costs of the refinance. If the increase beats the closing costs by at least five times those costs, counseling can generally be waived if the other conditions are met.
A simple way to think about it: if the refinance costs one dollar, the increase should be that dollar plus at least five more.
Some lenders may also set their own minimum for how much new money a refinance has to give you. I'll tell you if that applies with the lender on your loan.
Failing the five times test doesn't automatically stop a refinance. It usually means counseling can't be waived, and it's a strong hint to ask whether the refinance is really worth it.
Because of the industry's ethics standard, many lenders won't refinance a HECM until it's at least about 18 months old. If your loan is newer than that, it's usually a matter of waiting. I'm happy to put a reminder on my calendar and call you when you're there.
On a first HECM, counseling with an independent, HUD-approved counselor is always required. On a HECM to HECM refinance, FHA lets counseling be waived, but only when every one of these is true:
The lender has to document every one of these. Even when counseling can be waived, it's never a bad idea, and some lenders require it anyway. See Is counseling required for HECM to HECM refinances? and Reverse Mortgage Counseling.
Not always. FHA allows a waiver when all of its conditions are met, including the five-year window from your original HECM and the five times test. But counseling can't be waived in 13 states, including California and Texas. And if you're adding a borrower or a spouse, counseling is required.
You generally get credit for the upfront mortgage insurance you already paid on your current HECM, which lowers what you pay on the new loan. See Reverse Mortgage Costs.
If your spouse has turned 62, a refinance into a new HECM can generally put both of you on the loan as borrowers.
Yes, through a refinance, but a lower rate alone rarely covers the closing costs. It usually works alongside a higher home value or lending limit.
No. There are no required monthly mortgage payments. You must continue to pay property taxes and homeowners insurance, maintain the home, and meet the other loan terms.
If you have an adjustable HECM with an unused line of credit, that's your first place to look. The line may have grown more than you think. Check your statement, or call me and we'll read it together.
Send me your latest reverse mortgage statement, or call us at 530-888-6000. I'll run the numbers and tell you plainly whether a refinance is worth it. You can also start your reverse mortgage review or get your estimate.
Please don't send statements or other documents through the website forms. Your loan officer will tell you the safe way to share them.
ZYNG Mortgage, Inc., NMLS #76801. A reverse mortgage has no required monthly mortgage payments and uses your home's equity. Fees, mortgage insurance and other costs can be added to the loan balance, and the balance grows over time as interest is added, so your equity typically decreases. When the loan becomes due, the home may need to be sold, or the loan repaid from other funds. Interest is not tax-deductible until it is paid, in part or in full. You keep title to your home and must keep paying property taxes, homeowners insurance and upkeep, and meet the other loan terms; not doing so can make the loan due and could lead to foreclosure.
This material is not from HUD or FHA and was not approved by HUD or a government agency.
HECM count at the top of this page: HUD data through September 2026 (source, opens in a new tab).
