What if your largest asset could become your most tax-efficient source of retirement income? In this episode, we sit down with Laura Phillips of Colorado Reverse Mortgage to explore how homeowners can unlock the equity in their homes without triggering a major tax burden. Laura breaks down how modern reverse mortgage strategies—especially FHA-insured options—can convert illiquid equity into flexible, usable cash flow while allowing homeowners to stay in control of their property.
We also dive into how this approach compares with traditional exit strategies, when it makes sense to tap equity versus sell, and how to think about your home as a strategic financial tool within a broader wealth plan. Whether you’re planning for retirement or advising clients on tax-efficient income strategies, this conversation offers a fresh perspective on creating liquidity, flexibility, and long-term financial freedom.
Episode Highlights Here:
Brett
Before we jump into this episode, I want to invite you to join our community to help you become a better steward scale to billions and ultimately give more or all of it away. All I want you to do is to click the subscribe button right now. I love your support. It’s incredible to see your comments, and we’re just getting started. I can’t wait to go on this journey with you. Thank you so much for subscribing. It means the world to me. Hello everybody, and welcome to another episode of the build to billions podcast where we guide successful entrepreneurs on their journey from millions to billions. We leave the key to scaling and compounding your wealth and life starts every single day with a mindset and practice of stewardship over ownership and applying billionaire biblical principles. Our ultimate goals have to be scale and compound your wealth and life so you can give moral more, all of it away to help MVPs. My name is Brett Swarts. In each episode, we’re joined by the world’s top entrepreneurs, millionaires and billionaires, and they share their secrets with us so they can we can all compound and make a bigger impact. I’m excited about our next guest. She’s out of the boulder area in Colorado, and she is on a mission to help people with reverse mortgages, and she carefully guides clients through the entire HECM reverse loan process, and so they’re confident about their options available for the next 30 years. Please, welcome to the show with me. Laura Phillips, Laura, how we doing?
Laura
pretty good. How are you guys doing? Happy New Year.
Brett
Doing great. Happy New Year to you and for our listeners, excuse me for the first time, would you give us just a little more about your story and your current focus?
Laura
Well, gosh, I have been in the mortgage business for over 30 plus years and discovered about15 years ago that seniors were not well addressed. Diverse mortgages were out very unknown, but kind of just watched him on the periphery. About 10 years ago, I decided to jump right in full feet first into the reverse mortgage market. I am strictly offering reverse mortgages, and I feel like it’s a really misunderstood product, so I’m kind of a one-woman bandwagon to let people know it’s not a bad product. Okay, great.
Brett
What’s the number one secret to making reverse mortgages a winner for someone who might be listening,
Laura
number one secret is to be open and listen, find out all you can about it. My biggest thing is to say that it’s timing. It’s your timing, and I suspect that almost every senior will consider and look at a reverse mortgage in the course of their lifetime.
Brett
Okay, so be open and willing to hear what’s, what it is, what’s the number two secret toa reverse mortgage,
Laura
it doesn’t the bank doesn’t own your home. Everybody thinks your bank owed your home. It’s just a mortgage. It’s just like any other mortgage you’ve had; it doesn’t own your home. It is alien against your property.
Brett
Okay, so what if people don’t have that understanding or that mindset? What? What? What changes once, once they do know that they own the home and the bank doesn’t own their home,
Laura
I think they feel more relaxed. I think their biggest fears is the bank can come in and take it away at any point. There are two ways you can lose your house in a foreclosure with a
reverse mortgage, and one of them is to no longer live in it. So, you know, if you don’t occupy your home for a certain amount of time in the course of the year, then it’s not considered your primary residence. The other one is, if you don’t pay your property taxes. Your property taxes go into reverse, into arrears or behind. Then eventually the mortgage company is going to come in and pay those property taxes and take the home away.
Brett
Okay, so number one is listened and be open minded to the solution of a reverse mortgage. Number two is knowing that you own the home. It didn’t have to be such a, maybe a scary thing to think it’s going to be taken from you, right? So, what I’m hearing and what’s, what’s the what’s, what’s the next seeker, and the next part of the part of the thing that helps people to get really clear on the on the secrets to a reverse mortgage?
Laura
Well, came with a lot of negative thoughts out there. Reverse mortgages have been out for about 30 plus years. There’s a lot of negativities around it, so to to not feel shame about maybe you didn’t save enough for your retirement, or whatever feelings you have within your own personal self about having to go get one because of those, those early thoughts and comments about reverse mortgages. So, there’s no shame in getting one. People who have millions of dollars use it as a financial asset to make funds last longer and make their money work for them. People who haven’t saved enough use it to be able to fund their 30 years. So, it really is your personal needs and not to feel bad about it.
Brett
Okay, that makes sense. Yeah, so just knowing that it’s just another financial tool and not to feel bad about it or feeling insecure about it and or maybe you didn’t save as much, or things didn’t work out as well. But yeah, people. So, if you’d like this little, short clip of the interview I just did, click over here to watch the full interview. If. And please don’t forget to subscribe. Thanks so much, everybody.
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About Laura Phillips
Laura Phillips is a reverse mortgage specialist with Colorado Reverse Mortgage, where she focuses on helping homeowners—particularly those in or approaching retirement—access the equity in their homes as part of a broader financial strategy. With a strong emphasis on education, she works closely with clients and professional advisors to demystify reverse mortgages and guide informed decisions around FHA-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs).
Through her work, Laura is known for helping clients convert illiquid home equity into flexible cash flow solutions designed to support retirement income, aging in place, and overall financial stability. She frequently collaborates with financial planners, real estate professionals, and estate advisors to ensure reverse mortgage strategies are thoughtfully integrated into long-term wealth and retirement planning.
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