How to Money · Monday, August 10, 2026
The hosts discussed reverse mortgages and HELOCs as backup financial plans. They strongly advise against reverse mortgages, calling them a last resort, and prefer HELOCs as a more flexible backup, provided they are used responsibly and not taken out unless necessary. They also caution against borrowing against home equity purely for tax benefits.
“Reverse mortgagesh yuck. Definitely not as bad as it used to be. The last line of defense, not a backup.”
“I would say, yeah, absolutely well, And maybe that's what she's saying is maybe she's saying as like a I would say. If I was ready the email, I would have said back up to the backup, right because in a similar way, so if I had to rank them, I would say at the very end of the pack would be a reverse mortgage before that line of credit.”
“Actually, I personally have a line of credit against my home. I have a helock a home equity line of credit that is sitting there at a zero balance, zero dollar balance because I don't need it. But guess what, I got it there just in case I do, just in case I need that backup to the backup.”