Reverse mortgage, HELOC debt hit new all-time high in April

The balance of both reverse mortgage and HELOC debt reached a new all-time high in April, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI).

The outstanding reverse mortgage debt reached $3.66 billion in April, up by 1.24% from the previous month and up by 28.15% from the same month last year. While the 28.15% growth rate is the slowest pace since October 2017, it still makes reverse mortgage one of the fastest-growing debt segments in the country, with a growth rate that has not fallen below 10% over the past eight years.

Meanwhile, the outstanding HELOC debt reached $300.93 billion in April, up by 0.44% from the previous month and up by 7.56% from the same month last year. It’s the first time in history that the balance has passed the $300 billion mark, according to a Better Dwelling report.

The vast majority of that HELOC debt went to personal loans. The balance in this segment represented $268.38 billion in April, up by 0.49% from the previous month and up by 5.35% from the same month last year.

Business loans secured by HELOCs moved lower but were still higher than last year. The balance reached $32.54 billion in April, down by 0.02% from the previous month and down by 30.02% from the same month last year.

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