Is anyone else getting a Reverse Mortgage Loan in Brazos County or in the Brazos Valley?
The answer to this is yes…many are taking advantage of the equity in their homes and taking out a reverse mortgage. I can prove that to you by showing you a list from the Brazos County Property Records.
It’s been my experience that before senior citizens sign their final documents they want to know if anyone else in this area is taking advantage of the benefits of a reverse mortgage loan. Naturally, if you are considering a reverse mortgage you would like to know if others have decided to do it, or if you are the “guinea pig”. Rest assured that you are not a guinea pig. You are not alone if you are considering taking out a reverse mortgage.
There is a way you can gauge for yourself how many reverse mortgage loans are being taken out on properties in Brazos County. Here is a picture of one page of the reverse loan mortgages which have taken place in Brazos County within the last year.
All of the loans listed in this picture are the type of reverse mortgage I am most familiar with, the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage or “HECM”. The HECM is a reverse mortgage product which is backed by the government through the USA Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Wait! Back up…where did that information come from?
I got this picture from a site called Texas Land Records (http://www.texaslandrecords.com/). I took what is called a “screenshot” of the results I found when using the Texas Land Records, and searching the index of property transactions in Brazos County, Texas. In my search, I “told” the site that one of the parties to the transaction would be “U S A HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT” (Usually you will see the name of this agency as "USA Department of Housting and Urban Development" or HUD, however the clerk's office has indexed the agency's name as it is writte just before the opening parenthesis.) The reason this search provides a list of properties which have taken out a HECM reverse mortgage is because the USA Department of Housing and Urban Development is involved in every single HECM reverse mortgage made.
If you want to try this search for yourself, follow these instructions:
1) Go to Texas Land Records (http://www.texaslandrecords.com/).
2) Near the top on the gray bar across the screen click “Counties”.
3) Next you will see a big “2” on the right hand side of the page and there will be a list of counties underneath it. Click on “Brazos”.
4) At that page, near the top on the gray bar across the screen click “Free Search”.
5) Next, you will see a box to input Business/Last Name. In that box enter “U S A HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT”. You must enter this accurately and just as I have or it will not find any records.
6) Just below that you will see a drop down box where you can choose “Document Type”. Go down to select “Equity Lien”.
7) Hit “Search Now”.
If everything was done correctly you will find the same results I showed you up above in the picture. As you can see, “many” people in Brazos County have taken out reverse mortgages over the past year.
Why is this information available on the internet?
The trick I just showed you is not a commonly known way to get information. It is a well-kept secret. The truth is that most people have no idea this information exists either online or in the courthouse.
The answer to this is yes…many are taking advantage of the equity in their homes and taking out a reverse mortgage. I can prove that to you by showing you a list from the Brazos County Property Records.
It’s been my experience that before senior citizens sign their final documents they want to know if anyone else in this area is taking advantage of the benefits of a reverse mortgage loan. Naturally, if you are considering a reverse mortgage you would like to know if others have decided to do it, or if you are the “guinea pig”. Rest assured that you are not a guinea pig. You are not alone if you are considering taking out a reverse mortgage.
There is a way you can gauge for yourself how many reverse mortgage loans are being taken out on properties in Brazos County. Here is a picture of one page of the reverse loan mortgages which have taken place in Brazos County within the last year.
All of the loans listed in this picture are the type of reverse mortgage I am most familiar with, the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage or “HECM”. The HECM is a reverse mortgage product which is backed by the government through the USA Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Wait! Back up…where did that information come from?
I got this picture from a site called Texas Land Records (http://www.texaslandrecords.com/). I took what is called a “screenshot” of the results I found when using the Texas Land Records, and searching the index of property transactions in Brazos County, Texas. In my search, I “told” the site that one of the parties to the transaction would be “U S A HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT” (Usually you will see the name of this agency as "USA Department of Housting and Urban Development" or HUD, however the clerk's office has indexed the agency's name as it is writte just before the opening parenthesis.) The reason this search provides a list of properties which have taken out a HECM reverse mortgage is because the USA Department of Housing and Urban Development is involved in every single HECM reverse mortgage made.
If you want to try this search for yourself, follow these instructions:
1) Go to Texas Land Records (http://www.texaslandrecords.com/).
2) Near the top on the gray bar across the screen click “Counties”.
3) Next you will see a big “2” on the right hand side of the page and there will be a list of counties underneath it. Click on “Brazos”.
4) At that page, near the top on the gray bar across the screen click “Free Search”.
5) Next, you will see a box to input Business/Last Name. In that box enter “U S A HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT”. You must enter this accurately and just as I have or it will not find any records.
6) Just below that you will see a drop down box where you can choose “Document Type”. Go down to select “Equity Lien”.
7) Hit “Search Now”.
If everything was done correctly you will find the same results I showed you up above in the picture. As you can see, “many” people in Brazos County have taken out reverse mortgages over the past year.
Why is this information available on the internet?
The trick I just showed you is not a commonly known way to get information. It is a well-kept secret. The truth is that most people have no idea this information exists either online or in the courthouse.
Most lawyers wouldn’t think of it…and not many reverse mortgage loan officers or bankers would.
However, many years ago I was an independent public records retriever for companies who needed public records pulled from the courthouse clerks’ offices. I became familiar with the public records in courthouses I learned how much valuable information is available…IF you know where to look. I am sharing this information with you now because I know you may like to verify that you aren’t a pioneer in the reverse mortgage trend.
Is this information available at the courthouse?
Yes. Deed records, deeds of trust (mortgages) and many other types of documents are recorded at the courthouse. In fact, if since 1967 you have purchased or sold a piece of property in Brazos County there will be a record of it at Texas Land Records and in the County Clerk’s office. If you would like to visit the Brazos County Courthouse in person to take a look at these records first hand, you can find the courthouse at 300 E. 26th Street, Bryan, TX 77803. Go in the main entrance. The County Clerk’s office is immediately to your right.
Is this information available at the courthouse?
Yes. Deed records, deeds of trust (mortgages) and many other types of documents are recorded at the courthouse. In fact, if since 1967 you have purchased or sold a piece of property in Brazos County there will be a record of it at Texas Land Records and in the County Clerk’s office. If you would like to visit the Brazos County Courthouse in person to take a look at these records first hand, you can find the courthouse at 300 E. 26th Street, Bryan, TX 77803. Go in the main entrance. The County Clerk’s office is immediately to your right.
Is this information available for counties other than Brazos?
Yes. At this site alone you can locate indexes to property records for the following counties:
Bee County
Brazos County
Cameron County
Cherokee County
Denton County
Ector County
Grayson County
Hays County
Hidalgo County
Kaufman County
Madison County
Midland County
Nacogdoches County
Panola County
Potter County
Robertson County
Rockwall County
Rusk County
Scurry County
Smith County
Taylor County
Upton County
Walker County
Wichita County
Wise County
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