🏡 Right-Size with the H4P
Right-size without the compromise.
Is your current home the right home for aging in place — the right layout, the right maintenance load, the right distance from the grandkids? If not, the HECM for Purchase (H4P) changes the math on moving. Instead of paying all cash (draining your savings) or taking a traditional mortgage (adding a required payment to your retirement budget), the H4P lets you put down roughly 40–70% of the price — depending mostly on your age and current rates — and finance the rest with no required monthly principal & interest payment. You can buy more house for less cash, keep the difference invested, and settle into a home that actually fits this chapter.
Is this you?
This strategy tends to fit…
- Homeowners 62+ whose current house has the wrong stairs, wrong yard, or wrong zip code for the next 20 years
- Buyers who want single-level living or a low-maintenance build without draining their nest egg
- Sellers who want to move closer to family and keep cash in reserve
- Anyone comparing “pay all cash” vs. “new mortgage payment” and not loving either option
Questions people actually ask
Right-Size with the H4P: straight answers
How is an H4P offer received by sellers?
Well — because you’re bringing a large down payment and there’s no required monthly payment to qualify around, an H4P purchase can move quickly and feel closer to a cash offer in strength than a conventionally financed one. Kelly works directly with your real estate agent so the listing side understands exactly how the financing works.
Why is the down payment 40–70% instead of 20%?
Because you’ll never be required to make a monthly principal & interest payment, HUD requires more equity in the deal up front. The exact percentage is driven mostly by the age of the youngest borrower and current expected rates — older buyers generally bring less. Your check-up produces the precise figure for the price range you’re shopping.
Can we use the proceeds from selling our current home?
Yes — that’s the classic play. Sell the too-big house, use part of the proceeds as the H4P down payment on the right-size home, and keep the rest liquid for travel, reserves, or investments. Many of Kelly’s clients end up in a nicer home and with more money in the bank than a cash purchase would have left them.
What are our obligations after closing?
Live in the new home as your primary residence, keep property taxes and homeowners insurance current, pay any HOA dues, and maintain the home. Meet those, and no monthly mortgage payment is ever required. The loan is repaid when the last borrower sells, permanently moves out, or passes away — and it’s non-recourse, so neither you nor your heirs owe more than the home’s value at that time.
Keep exploring
Eliminate Your Monthly Payment
Use a HECM to pay off your current mortgage and retire the required monthly principal & interest payment for as long as you live in your home.
Learn more →The RELOC: A Growing Line of Credit
A reverse mortgage line of credit gives you a credit line whose unused portion grows over time by program rule — with no required monthly mortgage payment.
Learn more →Retire Now, Claim Later
Use housing wealth as a bridge — retire on your timeline, cover the gap to Medicare, and let your Social Security benefit grow toward the maximum at age 70.
Learn more →Wondering if this fits your plan?
That's literally what the home equity check-up is for. One friendly conversation, your real numbers, zero pressure — bring your family or your advisor.