Reverse Mortgage Counseling: Why It's Required and How a Session Works

Every borrower applying for a federal HECM reverse mortgage must complete a session with a HUD-approved counselor before the lender can take an application. The session is independent of the lender, runs about 60 to 90 minutes, and typically costs around $125. The counselor's certificate is a required document in the loan file. The rule exists in federal regulation at 24 CFR Part 206, Subpart B, and is one of the structural consumer protections built into the HECM program.

Last reviewed 2026-05-20

Why is counseling required?

The HECM is the only consumer-mortgage product where an independent, federally-regulated counseling session is a precondition to applying. Congress wrote the requirement into the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 when the HECM was first authorized, and HUD has tightened it since. Most recently, HUD ML 2010-10 set the certificate's validity period at 180 days and extended counseling to HECM for Purchase.

The reasoning is straightforward: the loan is complex, the borrower is generally 62 or older with limited remaining earning power, and the decision is largely irreversible once closed. An independent third party walks the borrower through mechanics and alternatives before any lender salesperson does. Jumbo (proprietary) programs are not covered by 24 CFR Part 206, but most lenders require an equivalent step under their own rules, partly because state lending laws often require it and partly to mirror the HECM's consumer-protection posture.

What happens in a counseling session?

A counselor covers a fixed agenda (HUD Handbook 7610.1, Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Counseling Handbook). The session walks through:

• The loan's mechanics. Cash-flow direction, what accrues on the balance, the four payout shapes, what triggers maturity. The pillar mechanics covered in how does a reverse mortgage work get rehearsed in the borrower's own numbers.
• The borrower's specific situation. The counselor uses two HUD-mandated tools: FIT (the Financial Interview Tool), which builds a budget picture of income, expenses, and financial fitness, and BCU (the Benefits Check-Up), which screens for federal and state benefits the borrower may not be claiming.
• Alternatives to a reverse mortgage. State-level deferred-payment property-tax programs, single-purpose reverse mortgages where they exist, a forward home-equity line of credit, downsizing, family loans. The counselor walks through alternatives even if the borrower came in committed to the HECM.
• Costs. Estimated origination fees, MIP, third-party closing costs, and ongoing interest accrual against the borrower's specific home value and age.
• Borrower questions. Time at the end for the borrower (and a spouse or family member, if invited; counselors generally encourage that) to ask anything they want.

The session ends with the counselor issuing a HECM Counseling Certificate. The certificate is valid for 180 days; the borrower presents it to a lender to start the application. Without that certificate, no HUD-approved lender will accept an application.

Who provides reverse mortgage counseling?

Only counselors employed by HUD-approved Housing Counseling Agencies can issue a HECM counseling certificate (24 CFR Part 214). The full list is published on HUD's HECM Counseling Roster at hud.gov/program_offices/housing/sfh/hcc. The roster includes both in-person and phone-counseling options; the borrower may use any HUD-approved counselor in any state, regardless of where the borrower lives, with one narrow exception: a small set of states require the session to be face-to-face (in person or by video) rather than telephone-only.

Counselors are individually certified by HUD and must complete continuing-education requirements to keep the certification current. The agency is the entity HUD approves; the counselor is the individual delivering the session.

How much does counseling cost?

The current fee range is roughly $100 to $200, with $125 being typical (HUD allows the agency to set its own fee within HUD guidance). HUD requires the agency to inform the borrower of the fee before the session begins. The fee can be:

• Paid by the borrower at the time of counseling, in which case it cannot be reimbursed by the lender later.
• Paid at loan closing out of the loan proceeds, in which case it appears on the closing disclosure.
• Waived if the borrower's household income is below 200% of the federal poverty level. Many counseling agencies have a sliding-scale or income-waiver policy; the borrower asks at the time of scheduling.

The fee covers the session plus any reasonable follow-up calls and the certificate itself. A second session, if needed, may carry a smaller follow-up fee.

How do I find a counselor?

Two paths to a HUD-approved counselor:

1. HUD's HECM Counseling Roster at hud.gov/program_offices/housing/sfh/hcc. Searchable by state. This is the authoritative list.
2. HUD's general housing-counseling locator at hud.gov/findacounselor, which covers all HUD-approved housing counseling (not just HECM).

A borrower can also call HUD's HECM counseling toll-free number (listed on the roster page) for help locating an agency that serves their state. Lenders are permitted to provide a list of at least nine HUD-approved counseling agencies, but not to steer borrowers to a particular agency or a lender-preferred counselor (24 CFR §206.41).

Run the calculator →

FAQ