If you are a senior citizen considering a reverse mortgage, you should make the internet your best friend. Unlike traditional “forward” loans, your local banker likely will not have extensive experience with reverse mortgages. You may be able to find a nearby qualified counsellor to talk to, but their time and resources are limited. Your best bet is to explore the many excellent websites focusing on reverse mortgages and learn everything you can.

One of the best features available online are the sophisticated (yet easy to use) reverse mortgage calculators. These tools allow you to input information about yourself and your home and instantly compute an accurate estimate of the reverse mortgage options you qualify for. Further, with a few keystrokes you can easily change the input assumptions and see new results under various “what if” scenarios. Not long ago, this level of information and computing power was simply unavailable to the average borrower.

However, there can be too much of a good thing. A Google search for reverse mortgage calculator turns up more than 45,000 results. Most of the reverse mortgage calculators look different from each other and an inexperienced searcher might quickly feel overwhelmed by the vast diversity and apparent complexity.

Don’t be. The truth is that most of the online reverse mortgage calculators are licensed from a handful of sources and have identical inner workings. They are made to look different from site to site so that the user assumes the tool is a unique feature of the site.

In the next few articles, we’ll try to cut through the confusion, review the different calculators available and point you towards those that are most useful.

One last thing you should be aware of: some websites have content dealing with the topic of reverse mortgages but include a regular “mortgage calculator” (i.e. for calculating foward mortgages) on the site. A forward mortgage calculator is of little use in the world of reverse mortgages.

Typically, it is the lower-quality websites that do this, trying to trick Google and other search engines into thinking they are a good match for someone searching for a “reverse mortgage calculator”. Be mindful of this and do not get frustrated or confused if you come across a calculator that produces confusing results.

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A Few More Related Articles of Interest:

Download Your Own FHA Reverse Mortgage Calculator

Compare Reverse Mortgage Lenders - A New Tool Can Help

Other Reverse Mortgage Calculators

Reverse Mortgage Knowledgebase

5. How much equity do I have and how much can I borrow?