WILL REVERSE MORTGAGES RESCUE THE BABY BOOMERS

Many of today’s workers are at risk of having insuf-ficient resources in retirement. The reason for this gloomy picture is a rapidly changing retirement land-scape defined by a rising Social Security retirement age, a sharp decline in traditional pensions coupled with modest 401(k) balances, low saving rates, and longer lifespans. However, one potential bright spot is housing equity, which has grown rapidly in recent years and is the largest non-pension asset for most households. The home value for the typical house-hold approaching retirement was $200,000 in 2004 — up from $139,000 in 2001.