Social Security benefits continue to fall short year after year putting retirees at greater risk from inflation, while a disproportionate percentage of their income is spent on soaring medical costs. A record number of retirees are now turning to a reverse mortgage to supplement their income and stop pinching pennies.

In 2008, 48 million Americans age 65 and over who depend on Social Security received a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase of 2.3 percent or, on average, an extra $24 per month.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, Social Security benefits are forecast to increase just 2.8 percent in 2009.

Retail prices are up 4 percent last year with a 5.7 percent rise in food, 5.5 percent increase in home energy, and a 35 percent jump in gasoline.

Social Security is supposed to protect retirees, but according to a recent study by The Senior Citizens League, retirees have lost 40 percent of their buying power since the beginning of the decade.

Each year since 2000, retirees have received an increase in their Social Security benefits lower than the rate of inflation. Social Security benefits have increased by just 22 percent, while retiree expenses have risen by 71 percent.

Not only are Social Security benefits rapidly falling behind inflation, a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found those age 65 and older spend five times more on health care than younger adults.

Medical services have risen by 5.7 percent a year, hospital services by 8.5 percent, and home health-care and nursing-home fees by 4.5 percent.

Medicare Part B premiums have soared by more than 93 percent since 2001, leaving many retirees to cover the rising cost of doctor’s visits, tests, and outpatient hospital care.

This squeeze on retirement income is putting many at risk of depleting their savings, delaying necessary home repairs or medical treatments, or cutting back on food and prescriptions.

To offset lost income and provide greater financial security, a record number of retirees are taking advantage of a government-insured reverse mortgage.

These mortgages enables homeowners 62 and older to borrow against their home with no repayment for as long as they live in their home. Credit and income are not used in qualifying for the reverse mortgage, and closing costs are financed, so there is usually no money out of pocket. Plus, a reverse mortgage does not affect Social Security or Medicare Benefits.

These mortgages provide the flexibility to customize the way funds are received to best meet individual needs. This includes a lump sum, a line of credit, monthly payments, or a combination of two or more of these options. This makes it possible to supplement monthly retirement income while using the line of credit for emergencies.

"Many of the retirees who contact us have a mortgage and high credit card payments that are putting their home and future at risk. "In many cases, they are able to pay off their existing mortgage and other debts with a reverse mortgage. By eliminating these monthly payments, our seniors are free from the stress they have been living with each month and are able to afford those things they have been putting off."

Advocacy groups for the elderly are lobbying to change the index used to determine adjustments to Social Security benefits to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Elderly Consumers or CPI-E. Two bills introduced in the current Congress (H.R. 1953 and H.R. 2032), if passed, could mean tens of thousands more for retirement years.

To learn more about reverse mortgages many lenders and HUD provide a free informational package and all information about you is strictly confidential at all times. If a senior is feeling the rising cost of the economy and seeing their life’s savings disappearing, then a Reverse Mortgage is one of the best and only options that will change their retirement years.

I am a Reverse Mortgage Specialist I have spent over 20 years as a Real Estate broker and the last 10 years in the mortgage industry, and 5 of them providing Reverse Mortgages. My years as a professional, I have always felt that helping our seniors is helping the back bone of this country. Our seniors are the ones who made this country great and in the time of their lives that is so suppose to be their golden years it is in many cases painted black. I have dedicated my life to helping them achieve some sort of financial independence and help to enjoy the fruits of their labors.

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