A Fort Lewis college-and-railroad town where the standard program, not a resort-scale product, does the work.
The stigma comes from a product that existed a generation ago. Today's reverse mortgage is federally regulated, requires independent HUD-approved counseling, carries non-recourse protection, and lets you stay in your home for life. You keep your title. The bank does not own your house.
In Durango, plenty of retirement-age homeowners are sitting on a lifetime of equity that is doing nothing for them. A reverse mortgage unlocks that equity without a monthly mortgage payment — while your property taxes, insurance, and maintenance continue as your responsibility.
It is not right for everyone, and I will tell you when it isn't. But it is worth understanding how it actually works today — not what you heard from someone who last looked at it in the 1990s.
Durango owners often picture reverse mortgages as either a big-resort tool from up north or a last resort for people in trouble, and neither describes what is actually here. Most Durango homes sit well within the federal lending limit, which means the FHA-insured HECM at 62 — the protected, government-backed product — fits, and there is meaningful equity behind it for owners who planned carefully, not just those who ran short.
— Bobby Friel · CO Home Equity · Founder
How did you come to see this as a tool for the desperate rather than for a careful owner sitting on real equity?
Minimum age
The Colorado difference
| Factor | Standard HECM | Jumbo / Proprietary |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum age | 62 | 55 |
| Federal insurance | FHA-insured | None (proprietary) |
| Maximum loan | Federal HECM limit | Substantially higher |
| Mortgage insurance premium | Yes | No |
| Non-recourse protection | Yes | Yes |
| Independent HUD counseling | Required | Required |
| You keep your title | Yes | Yes |
| Monthly mortgage payment | None required* | None required* |
| Growing line of credit | Yes | Varies by program |
| Best fit | Homes within the federal limit | Higher-value Colorado homes |
Enter your home value, mortgage balance, and age. Your equity and the programs you may be eligible for update as you type — no email, no gate.
Your equity
$600,000
Programs you may be eligible for
Both a standard HECM (FHA-insured) and jumbo proprietary programs may be available. Which one fits depends on your home value and goals.
Homeowners in your range typically access a meaningful portion of their equity — the exact figure depends on age, current rates, and the program. I run your real numbers on the first call, at no cost.
Get Your Real NumbersAn estimate, not an offer. Actual eligibility and accessible equity depend on your age, property type, current rates, and program factors. Property taxes, homeowners insurance, and home maintenance remain your responsibility.
A good fit
You are 55 or older
Jumbo proprietary programs start at 55; a standard HECM starts at 62.
You hold significant equity
The more equity you have built, the more a reverse mortgage can do for you.
You plan to stay in your home
The costs are front-loaded, so this fits people who intend to stay for years, not months.
You want to end a monthly mortgage payment
For most of the people I work with, that is the largest line in the monthly budget.
You can keep up taxes, insurance, and upkeep
These remain your responsibility — the program does not cover them.
Not for everyone
You plan to move soon
If you will sell within a couple of years, the up-front costs rarely make sense.
You want to leave the home free and clear
Heirs inherit the home and the balance against it — they can keep or sell, but there is a balance.
You are already behind on taxes or insurance
These obligations continue, and falling behind on them can trigger default.
A younger family member is affected
If someone under the program age lives with you, their situation needs careful review first.
Another option simply fits better
Sometimes a HELOC, a sale, or doing nothing is the right answer. I will tell you.
I have told people not to do this. It costs me the file and I would rather lose the file than put someone in the wrong product. If that is you, I will say so on the first call.
Downtown Durango is the historic heart of town — a walkable district of Victorian homes and brick blocks near the shops, the college, and the railroad depot. Values here sit within the federal lending limit, which keeps the FHA-insured HECM at 62 the right tool, and the walkability that defines these blocks is exactly what makes them such a natural place to stay and age in place.
The Animas Valley runs north of town into larger homes and ranch properties along the river, with acreage and views that carry real value. Most homes here fit the FHA-insured HECM at 62, though the larger ranches can occasionally approach the federal lending limit, where the jumbo program that opens at 55 would apply — the one Durango pocket where the individual appraisal answers the program question.
Three Springs is Durango's master-planned community on the mesa near Mercy Regional, a newer neighborhood built around trails, parks, and proximity to healthcare. Owners here have built solid equity within the federal lending limit as the area filled in, which makes the standard HECM at 62 a clean way to draw on it — with the medical access next door reinforcing it as an aging-in-place choice.
Edgemont Ranch sits east of town in a wooded, semi-rural setting of single-family homes on generous lots, drawing owners who wanted space and quiet within reach of Durango. Its values stay within the federal lending limit, so the FHA-insured HECM at 62 suits it, and the wooded setting rewards an appraiser who weighs the land and the trees alongside the house.
The Hillcrest area on the Fort Lewis mesa holds established homes near the college and the rim, many owned by long-tenured residents and retirees who value the views and the walk to campus. Values here sit comfortably within the federal lending limit, which makes the FHA-insured reverse mortgage at 62 the straightforward tool for turning that long tenure into usable equity.
Durango West is an established residential area west of town toward the Fort Lewis Mesa country, a settled community of single-family homes on larger lots held by long-tenured owners. Its values sit within the federal lending limit, so the FHA-insured HECM at 62 is the fit, letting owners here draw on years of steady equity without leaving the quieter edge of the Durango area.
Illustrative examples based on typical Colorado scenarios. All programs require ongoing payment of property taxes, homeowners insurance, and home maintenance.
Marlene, 71, retired near the Fort Lewis mesa with a Hillcrest home paid off, but a fixed income no longer stretched across rising costs. An FHA-insured HECM turned some of that equity into a steady monthly draw that bridges the gap without affecting Social Security, so the home stays hers with no payment and the budget finally holds.
Clifford, 74, wanted to stay in his historic downtown home near the shops and the railroad, but the old layout needed work to be safe. A HECM funded a main-floor conversion, a walk-in shower, and grab bars, and opened a reserve for care — so the walkable life he built downtown can carry into his later years.
Duane, 73, kept selling investments in weak markets to cover expenses on an Animas Valley place he owns outright. A HECM line of credit gave him somewhere else to draw during downturns, leaving the portfolio to recover, so no holdings were sold at the wrong time and the valley acreage stays entirely his.
Keith and Lois, both 70, wanted to help a grandchild attend Fort Lewis right in town without draining their retirement accounts. A HECM line of credit on their paid-off Three Springs home covered the costs as they arose and left the unused portion growing, so the help came without a single account touched.
One conversation — your numbers, your timeline, and a straight answer on whether this fits.
Durango families are often spread across the Southwest, and the fear is that a reverse mortgage leaves the distant kids with a mess to sort out. It leaves them a clean choice instead — settle the one loan and keep the home, or sell and take what is above it — and because the HECM is non-recourse and federally insured, no shortfall can ever follow them back to wherever they live.
— Bobby Friel · CO Home Equity · Founder
If your children inherited a single loan to clear rather than a tangle to sort from a distance, how would that change the picture for them?
Strategy 01
Many Durango owners have paid-off homes and real savings and use a HECM not from need but from strategy — a tax-free monthly draw that supplements income without touching investments or affecting Social Security. It is a planning tool for owners who did things right, turning stable equity into flexibility on their own terms.
Strategy 02
Durango's walkable downtown and its medical access through Mercy Regional make aging in place realistic, and HECM funds cover the modifications and the reserve that make it safe. A main-floor setup, a walk-in shower, and a cushion for care let an owner stay near the shops and the doctors rather than leave the town they chose.
Strategy 03
Rather than selling investments into a down market to cover expenses, a Durango owner can draw on a HECM line of credit during the dip and let the portfolio recover, with the unused portion growing over time. In a seasonal economy where values can wobble, the home becomes a buffer that keeps long-term savings from being cashed out at the wrong moment.
Strategy 04
A HECM line of credit lets a Durango grandparent help with a grandchild's education — often right in town at Fort Lewis — without draining retirement accounts, and the unused balance keeps growing. It turns a paid-down home into a way to support family while leaving the owner's own plans fully intact.
Mistake 01
Some Durango owners assume a reverse mortgage signals financial trouble, when many borrowers here have paid-off homes and healthy savings and use it strategically. Most homes fit the FHA-insured HECM at 62, and framing it as a tool for the desperate misses what it actually is — a planning instrument for a careful owner sitting on real equity.
Mistake 02
Durango values have climbed enough over the past decade that even owners who feel they bought recently may hold substantial equity. Writing off a reverse mortgage on the assumption there is not enough there yet skips the one step — a quick review — that usually shows otherwise.
Mistake 03
A larger Animas Valley ranch can approach the limit, but most valley homes still fit the FHA-insured HECM at 62, and treating the whole area as jumbo overstates it. Reaching for a jumbo where the standard program applies trades away government-backed protections an owner would otherwise keep.
Mistake 04
A home near the Animas may sit in a flood zone that requires flood insurance as a condition of the loan, and discovering that late can complicate a closing. Confirming flood status early, and folding the coverage cost into the plan, keeps a riverside setting from becoming an unexpected obstacle.
Watch 01
La Plata County carries real wildfire exposure, and insurers have grown more selective and more expensive across the region, so coverage availability belongs on an annual checklist alongside the premium. Because active insurance is a condition of any reverse mortgage, a Durango owner should confirm a carrier will renew well before the policy lapses.
Watch 02
Durango's distance from larger metros means specialized medical care can require travel, and that cost climbs with age as part of the carrying-cost picture a reverse mortgage should account for. Planning a reserve for care and transport, rather than assuming everything is close, is part of aging in place responsibly here.
Watch 03
Properties near the Animas can fall in FEMA flood zones that require flood insurance for a reverse mortgage, adding an ongoing cost to the budget. Confirming your zone before applying keeps unexpected flood coverage from surfacing late and reducing your net proceeds.
Watch 04
Durango's economy leans on tourism and seasons, which can introduce some wobble into values over a long horizon. On a reverse mortgage the credit line is protected once established, but planning conservatively around that seasonality keeps an owner's overall equity position from being a surprise down the road.
Market Snapshot
Durango, CO
Durango is Southwest Colorado's anchor, a La Plata County mountain town shaped by Fort Lewis College, the Durango and Silverton Railroad, and year-round recreation. Its economy is unusually diverse for a town this size — education, healthcare through Mercy Regional, tourism, and a growing base of remote workers — which has driven steady appreciation, with many homes bought a decade or so ago now worth roughly double.
For reverse mortgage borrowers that means strong values paired with accessible eligibility: most Durango homes sit well within the federal lending limit, so the FHA-insured HECM at 62 applies with its full protections and there is real equity to reach. The one exception is the acreage up the Animas Valley, where a larger ranch can approach the limit and the jumbo program that opens at 55 comes into play. A walkable downtown and medical access support aging in place, and La Plata appraisers who understand downtown historic homes, Animas Valley acreage, and the newer Three Springs developments keep each valuation accurate.
In partnership with
Direct Insurance Services
Your reverse mortgage lender requires active homeowners insurance with full replacement-cost coverage. Colorado homeowners face real exposure: hail in the Front Range, wildfire in the foothills and mountain zones, severe wind across the plains. A single storm can cause serious roof and exterior damage.
Before your reverse mortgage closes, we run a full insurance review through our partners at Direct Insurance Services — not just to satisfy your lender's requirements, but to make sure there are no coverage gaps. It saves headaches and money.
Durango is a Southwest Colorado town with its own economy — Fort Lewis College, the railroad, Mercy Regional, a steady stream of remote workers and retirees who came for the mountains and the walkable downtown. The misconception I meet is that a reverse mortgage is either a resort-scale product from up north or a move made only in trouble. Neither fits. Most homes here sit within the federal lending limit, and the equity behind the standard HECM belongs to owners who planned well, not owners who failed to.
The hesitation in Durango is usually a decades-old memory doing the talking — the predatory version of this loan that federal reform spent years dismantling. What an owner gets now is government-insured, independently counseled, and capped so the balance can never exceed the home. In a town that thinks for itself, I find the fastest way past the fear is simply to lay the current rules beside the old story and let an owner see how little the two have in common.
The program question in Durango has a short answer, and I give it straight: the FHA-insured reverse mortgage at 62 fits the great majority of homes, from a downtown historic house to a newer Three Springs build. The one place values occasionally climb toward the federal lending limit is the acreage up the Animas Valley, where a larger ranch could reach the jumbo program that opens at 55 — a genuine but narrow exception I name only when the specific property calls for it.
Before the parts people like, I put the sober mechanics on the table: the balance rises against a home that stays yours, and just the mortgage payment comes off the monthly list — the taxes, insurance, and upkeep stay on your plate. Durango owners tend to appreciate that kind of plain accounting, and I would rather it anchor the conversation from the start than surface as a surprise once someone is attached to the benefits.
Durango families tend to be scattered across the region, and an unspoken plan travels badly over that distance. My base is Edwards, though my clients sit in every corner of Colorado, Durango among them, so the grown children are part of it from the outset, by phone across the distance or in person when it works. When the heirs see one clean loan to clear and no shortfall that can chase them home, the distance stops being a complication.
Same team, same programs, across the Front Range and the mountains. Find your market.
Somewhere else in Colorado? See Colorado Reverse Mortgages
A free, no-obligation equity review. I walk you through your options — HECM, jumbo, or whether a reverse mortgage is even the right move for your Durango home. Your adult children are welcome on the call.
No monthly mortgage payment required. Borrower must continue paying property taxes, homeowners insurance, and home maintenance.
Bobby Friel · NMLS# 332039 · Friel-Good Mortgage, Inc. · NMLS# 1901977
