The MetLife Study on the Changing Role of Home Equity and Reverse Mortgages, issued today by the MetLife Mature Market Institute (MMI) and the National Council on Aging (NCOA), calls for a more comprehensive approach to ensure that this asset is used appropriately and effectively to deal with the growing uncertainties of retirement.

The study finds that 35% of older Americans see their homes not just as secure places to live, but also as collateral for a loan. About 14% are taking cash out of their house through a home equity loan or reverse mortgage. This is a growing reality for affluent households who seek to enhance their lifestyle, as well as middle-income families for whom it may be their only choice. Study findings indicate that older homeowners are using home equity to increase income security, enhance financial resilience to deal with unexpected expenses, and to improve debt management, among other things.

"Tapping home equity in a timely and appropriate way can keep small budget shortfalls from becoming overwhelming problems," said Barbara R. Stucki, Ph.D., director of the Reverse Mortgage Initiative for NCOA.

The study highlights different options for using home equity that are not part of the current national conversation. These include:

    --  The use of reverse mortgages to delay the age at which one might begin
        to collect Social Security, thus increasing the amount of one's ultimate
        monthly Social Security income.
    --  Reverse mortgages as a stopgap measure to consolidate credit card debt,
        to cover investment losses or to defer mortgage payments.
    --  Periodic distributions that would tap home equity to help people meet
        expenses if they outlive their savings/retirement income.
    --  Programs that combine public benefits with modest amounts drawn from
        home equity to help seniors stay at home.
    --  Home equity lines of credit for emergency spending, such as home
        maintenance, without which many homes decay and lose value.
    --  Reverse mortgages with a line of credit option for borrowers to pay
        out-of-pocket health and home care expenses. Borrowers only pay the

The full study, Tapping Home Equity in Retirement: The MetLife Study on the Changing Role of Home Equityand Reverse Mortgages, and The Essentials: Reverse Mortgages, are available at www.maturemarketinstitute.com under "What's New."

For more information about the MetLife Mature Market Institute, visit: www.maturemarketinstitute.com.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5991974&;lang=en amount they use from the loan.