PAUL SCHEPER KNOWS how reverse mortgages can make a difference. There were the clients who used reverse mortgages to fill pandemic-era income gaps—and had so much fun they retired fully to enjoy the rest of their lives. And there was the mother whose daughter was undergoing cancer treatments. A monthly infusion of cash from the mother’s reverse mortgage freed the daughter to escape her financial worries and concentrate on recovery. Two years later, the daughter is cancer-free, and the mother has stopped taking withdrawals. “Indirectly,” Scheper says, “this product helped somebody overcome cancer.” Scheper is a positive thinker and a CRMP whose career in reverse mortgages found him after he spent 20 years devoted exclusively to forward mortgages. He grew up in California and ventured east to attend Harvard University, where he switched majors from business to psychology “because I wanted to have fun in school and wanted to learn something that was actually interesting.” In his senior year, Scheper married his high school sweetheart, Gigi. After he graduated in 1983, most available jobs were in finance, but he still longed for a human connection. He and Gigi moved back to their native California, where a college roommate mentioned that his employer, a large bank, was seeking management trainees. That’s where Scheper was introduced to traditional mortgages. But around 2004, he noticed that older applicants weren’t qualifying. “They needed income, assets, perfect credit,” Scheper says now. “I was referring them to a friend doing reverse mortgages, and he would fund all of them. The people seemed happy, joyful, excited. After about five referrals, I said, ‘I’m going to learn this myself!’” Scheper attended a NRMLA conference in Chicago and, armed with a yellow notepad and a pen, he “learned reverses cold.” He didn’t drop traditional mortgages but added the reverse product to his portfolio. “To me, it’s an advantage to be able to offer both because sometimes it’s more suitable and appropriate to listen and find out that this customer might fit better on a traditional loan or traditional equity line,” he says. “I don’t like to pigeonhole anybody into a reverse mortgage, unless it’s suitable, sensible, sustainable and logical.” Scheper built his client base through referrals and direct marketing. He acquired mailing lists of seniors with equity from title companies. He gave seminars in restaurants and offices. For many years, he sent every customer in his database a newsletter sharing sports scores, recipes and a reminder that he was available to provide the “alpha and the omega loans,” from a buyer’s first home loan to what can be their final home loan, a reverse mortgage. When he meets prospective clients, Scheper reminds them that a reverse mortgage is just a loan, and “it’s exciting when you see that it boils down to these five words: It is just a loan. KISS stands for keep it super simple. It’s unbelievable when you see what happens.” When Working With Clients, CRMP Emphasizes Listening Skills A Chat With Paul Scheper, CRMP, Loangevity Mortgage, Ladera Ranch, CA By M. Diane McCormick Paul Scheper CRMP: Across the Kitchen Table Across the Kitchen Table continued on page 14 REVERSE MORTGAGE / SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER 2023 13
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