To find out if someone has a reverse mortgage, search the land records in the county where the property sits. Reverse mortgages are recorded as liens on the title, just like any other mortgage, and those records are public. The most common type, a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM), is insured by the Federal Housing Administration and leaves distinctive markings in the recorded document that are easy to recognize once you know what to look for.
Search the County Land Records
Every mortgage recorded against a property is filed with the local county office, usually called the County Recorder’s Office or Register of Deeds. These records are open to anyone. You don’t need to be a relative, an heir, or a party to the loan to look.
Most counties now run an online search portal. If yours doesn’t, you can walk into the office and search at a public terminal. To get useful results you need the homeowner’s full legal name as it appears on official records, plus the property address. A parcel identification number from a property tax statement produces the cleanest search. Small spelling variations in a name can hide results, so try middle initials, maiden names, and alternate spellings if the first pass turns up nothing.
A name search returns an index of every document tied to that person: deeds, mortgages, liens, releases. Viewing the index and basic document summaries is usually free. Pulling the full recorded mortgage document is what tells you whether a given lien is a reverse mortgage or a conventional one, and a certified copy costs a small per-page fee that varies by county.
How to Spot a Reverse Mortgage on the Recorded Document
A reverse mortgage is recorded as a mortgage or deed of trust, so at first glance it looks like any other loan. Several features make it unmistakable once the document is open in front of you.
HECM Language and HUD as a Second Lienholder
The clearest sign is the phrase “Home Equity Conversion Mortgage” in the document title or opening paragraphs. Every HECM has two recorded mortgages: a first held by the lender and a second held by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.1Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). 4235.1 REV-1 Chapter 1 General Information If HUD is named as the beneficiary on a second mortgage against the property, you’re almost certainly looking at a HECM. The document will also carry an FHA case number, a 10-digit identifier whose first three digits indicate the state and HUD field office territory, followed by a six-digit serial number and a check digit.2FHA Connection. Case Number Assignment Update Page – Field Descriptions
No Payment Schedule, and a “Maturity Event” Clause
A reverse mortgage has no fixed monthly payments, so the recorded document contains no amortization schedule. Instead, it states that the full balance becomes due upon a “maturity event.” Under federal regulations, those events include the death of the last surviving borrower, the property ceasing to be the borrower’s principal residence, the borrower being absent for more than 12 consecutive months due to illness, or the borrower failing to keep up with property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, or other loan obligations.3eCFR. 24 CFR Part 206 – Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Insurance A mortgage with no payment schedule and this maturity-event language is a reverse mortgage rather than a home equity line of credit or a conventional loan.
Proprietary Reverse Mortgages Look Different
Not every reverse mortgage is a HECM. Some lenders offer proprietary reverse mortgages, sometimes called jumbo reverse mortgages, that are not insured by FHA.4Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Are There Different Types of Reverse Mortgages? These won’t carry an FHA case number and won’t show HUD as a second lienholder. They will still describe the loan with no fixed repayment schedule and reference maturity events tied to death or vacancy. If you see a mortgage with those features but no federal fingerprints, treat it as a likely proprietary reverse mortgage and use the lender’s name on the document as your starting point for more information.
Other Ways to Confirm a Reverse Mortgage
County records are the most reliable source, but a few other paths can confirm what you suspect or point you in the right direction when the records are difficult to search.
MERS Servicer Lookup
The Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (MERS) maintains a public database that identifies the servicer currently handling a loan. You can search by property address, by the borrower’s name and Social Security number, or by the Mortgage Identification Number printed on the original loan documents.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Can I Tell Who Owns My Mortgage? The address-only option is the most accessible if you don’t have the borrower’s personal information. A result naming a servicer that specializes in reverse mortgages is a strong clue. MERS only covers loans registered in its system, so a blank result doesn’t rule out a reverse mortgage.
The Borrower’s Mail
Federal regulations require HECM servicers to send borrowers monthly account statements showing the total paid out, accrued interest, mortgage insurance premiums charged, and the current outstanding balance.3eCFR. 24 CFR Part 206 – Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Insurance If you have legitimate access to the borrower’s mail, say as an estate representative, these statements name the servicer, show the loan balance, and confirm the loan type. Letters from HUD or from reverse mortgage servicers arriving at the home are often how families first learn a HECM exists.
Hire a Title Company
If working with county records yourself feels like too much, a title company or title abstractor will run a lien search on the property for you. A professional title search typically costs between $75 and $500 depending on location and complexity. It returns a report listing every lien and encumbrance on the title, including any reverse mortgage, with no need for you to read through individual recorded documents. This is the route real estate attorneys and buyers routinely take.
Getting the Loan Balance Once You’ve Confirmed It Exists
Confirming the loan exists is a different task from getting the current balance or a payoff quote. Servicers won’t release that information to anyone who asks. You need to establish a legitimate claim to the property first.
Federal law gives you a defined path. Under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, anyone who might be a successor in interest can send a written request to the loan servicer that includes the borrower’s name and enough account information for the servicer to identify the loan. The servicer must respond by telling you exactly what documents it needs to confirm your identity and your ownership interest.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1024.36 – Requests for Information In practice this usually means a death certificate, proof of your relationship to the borrower such as a will, trust document, or court order, and your identification.
Once the servicer confirms you as a successor in interest, you can request loan information and payoff statements as if you were the borrower.7eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1024 Subpart C – Mortgage Servicing Families often give up after a phone call to the lender ends in a privacy refusal. A written request that explicitly invokes successor-in-interest status moves faster than any phone call.
Why Time Matters Once You Confirm It
If the borrower has died, the clock is already running. The loan becomes due and payable the moment the last surviving borrower dies, and HUD requires the servicer to begin the foreclosure process within six months if the debt hasn’t been resolved.8HUD. Inheriting a Home Secured by an FHA-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Confirming the existence of a reverse mortgage is the first step; getting the balance, an appraisal, and legal advice about your options should follow quickly after.