SENIORS

Senior Citizens

Are you worried about being able to afford to stay in or maintain your home as you get older?

The HOPE for Seniors Program ( Home Ownership Preservation for the Elderly) offers free, unbiased information and counseling to senior homeowners about reverse mortgages, tax relief options and low-cost home repair program – giving seniors a realistic picture of what these services would mean for their personal circumstances. HOPE is ideal for seniors who are worried about being able to afford to stay in or maintain their home as they get older. Seniors can receive confidential counseling about their personal circumstances and honest information about their rights and options.

All counseling is done by appointment only, and can be scheduled by calling 630/260-2500.

What To Expect When You Call For An Appointment

Other Resources

What To Expect When You Call For An Appointment

When you call our office for information, our receptionist will first verify that you are a senior homeowner residing in DuPage County.

A housing counselor will then spend a few minutes on the phone with you, gathering some basic information that will help them prepare to meet with you.

You will be sent a packet of forms and information in the mail. Your counselor will advise you as to what personal and financial information you will need to submit in order to make your counseling session as useful as possible. In general, your counselor will need to get a sense of your cash flow, your financial resources, and any bills you are worried about being able to pay.

Prior to your appointment, try to identify your specific financial needs and goals for counseling. For example, are you short of cash every month, or only when property taxes are due? Do you have overwhelming debt you are worried about being able to pay? Inform your counselor of your needs so that she can help you find the solutions that you are looking for.

You will also receive some helpful reference materials about reverse mortgages. We strongly suggest that you read these publications prior to your appointment if you are considering a reverse mortgage.

The role of DHOC is to provide unbiased information about the benefits and risks of reverse mortgages, tax relief programs, and other such programs. We neither encourage nor discourage their use; instead, we help seniors understand how these things would impact their personal circumstances. All decisions are strictly up to the senior homeowner.

While we welcome calls from a senior’s loved ones and advisors, we will not discuss the senior’s circumstances with anyone or allow their presence in a counseling session without the senior’s express written consent.

Other Resources

The below links and phone numbers provide useful information about reverse mortgages and DuPage County senior services.

Call DuPage County Human Services at 630/407-6500 and ask for information about programs for seniors or log onto:

http://www.dupageco.org/humanservices/generic.cfm?doc_id=480.

Call DuPage County Tax Assessors office at 630/407-5900 and ask about tax relief programs for seniors or log onto:

http://www.dupageco.org/treasurer/generic.cfm?doc_id=133.

Log onto the following websites for information about reverse motgages:

www.aarp.org/revmort

www.reverse.org

www.hud.gov/buying/rvrsmort.cfm