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Constance
"I was lucky in love, not so lucky with money," says Constance Gagnon, 75, who has loved and married two men. Sadly, both of them died without being able to leave her a source of retirement income - but she did own her Los Angeles County home.
It seems that, before WWII, Constance was engaged to her first love, Wilfred "Bill" Gagnon, but broke off the relationship by the end of the war. Subsequently, she was married for 37 years to Walter A. Murray, who died in 1992. Then, in 1993, she heard that Bill's wife had died at their Florida residence, so she sent him a sympathy card. From that point, they renewed first their friendship...then he came to California in 1994...then they got married...and six months later he died.
There was only a little Social Security income from her own employment history (she's primarily been a phone system operator for a number of organizations) and none from her husbands'. "It was really tough to make ends meet," said Constance.
She had investigated other reverse mortgage companies in the past but had never had taken action; in early 1998, however, she contacted Financial Freedom Homeowner Representative Jim Mitchell and, very quickly, was granted a HECM reverse mortgage, created by FHA/HUD.
"Reverse mortgages give you the ability to get caught up on bills and provide you with extra income," explains Constance. "Now I've been able to join a few clubs, go out for lunch - just enjoy daily life! I'm extremely happy with the extra income."
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