{"id":49404,"date":"2026-04-27T13:19:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T10:19:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/jesse-allen-on-executing-rates-reverse-mortgage-strategic-blueprint\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T13:19:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T10:19:42","slug":"jesse-allen-on-executing-rates-reverse-mortgage-strategic-blueprint","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/jesse-allen-on-executing-rates-reverse-mortgage-strategic-blueprint\/","title":{"rendered":"Jesse Allen on executing Rate\u2019s reverse mortgage strategic blueprint"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Jesse Allen arrived at Rate<\/a> <\/strong>in late 2024 to lead its reverse mortgage division, he was immediately tasked with continuing the growth trajectory for the Chicago-based mortgage lending giant.<\/p>\n

Rate has long been a leading forward mortgage lender<\/a>, ranking No. 9 nationally in 2025 with $45.6 billion in volume, according to Inside Mortgage Finance. Its place in the reverse lending landscape is relatively small, with the company endorsing 235 Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) in 2025, good for 17th in the country, Reverse Market Insight<\/strong> reported. Still, that represented 54% growth from the prior year.<\/p>\n

Allen, a longtime reverse mortgage professional with previous stops at OneTrust Home Loans<\/strong> and American Advisors Group<\/strong>, recently sat down with HousingWire<\/strong>\u2019s Reverse Mortgage Daily for a wide-ranging interview. The San Diego-based executive and board member for the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association <\/strong>(NRMLA<\/a>) discussed Rate\u2019s business strategy, proprietary products, competition from the home equity investment space and more.<\/p>\n

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.<\/em><\/p>\n

Neil Pierson: You came to Rate 18 months ago<\/a><\/strong> to lead the reverse mortgage division. What have you been able to do since then to bring your vision and strategy to life?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jesse Allen: <\/strong>That\u2019s been a fast 18 months. The short version of that story is we were able to quickly build on the existing platform that was here. Rate has been passively doing reverse for years \u2014 100 loans or so a year, just because of the power of the brand and the distribution.<\/p>\n

Before I joined the team, they had put some effort into really growing the business, and they doubled the business in 2024 versus the year before. But it got to a place where they decided to really go after it as a growth business versus a product offering. And that\u2019s when my team and I plugged in.<\/p>\n

We built on anything and everything that was working, like a lot of the infrastructure they had in place with the traditional forward mortgage loan officers in getting them trained. Last year, we saw the number of traditional LOs that participate in reverse go up by 60% year over year.<\/p>\n

We had to scale the entire platform, from the LOS to the CRM. We\u2019re gaining share \u2014 in March we were 100 basis points better on market share, probably one of the fastest-growing lenders. So we\u2019re pretty happy with the progress, but we have a ton of work to do.<\/p>\n

Pierson: Everyone can see you\u2019re growing in the HECM market, but proprietary products<\/a> are what most companies are relying on today for growth. What is Rate doing in that arena right now?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Allen:<\/strong> 55-plus lending is how we go to market. And within that, we have a full suite of reverse products and all of the mainstay, proprietary products that are available in the marketplace. We have five different investors with these products. We offer all of them on a nondelegated principal agent basis, so we don\u2019t have our own proprietary products, but honestly, I don\u2019t see the need for it.<\/p>\n

Most of the investors, we have great relationships with them \u2014 Longbridge Financial<\/strong>, Finance of America<\/strong>, Mutual of Omaha<\/strong>, Smartfi Home Loans,<\/strong> Nationwide Equities<\/strong>. We trust their service levels; we know their operators. With everything else we had to do, deploying our own proprietary loans wasn\u2019t at the top of the list, so we decided to just add all their products.<\/p>\n

Proprietary, as a mix of our business, is a really significant portion of the growth. Last year, I would say, it accounted for 30% of our client transactions and probably 55% or 60% of our dollar volume.<\/p>\n

I think that a full product suite is important because HECM is an important cornerstone to the industry. But there are some guideline reasons where that product doesn\u2019t. fit. Similar to forward mortgages, where if the government or conventional products don\u2019t fit, you want to come in with non-QM<\/a>, I think proprietary reverse is a way to think about how to serve clients that the Federal Housing Administration<\/strong> (FHA) doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a great, natural evolution, and it\u2019s certainly broadened the number of clients we can serve as an industry. Finance of America\u2019s HomeSafe Second is an example of that \u2014 a second-lien product<\/a> that didn\u2019t exist before. That opens up the box to help more clients who are comfortable with their debt service. They don\u2019t want to refi, but they want to tap their equity with some of the benefits of a reverse mortgage.<\/p>\n

Pierson: Let\u2019s change gears and talk about <\/strong>Hispanic homeownership<\/strong><\/a>, since that\u2019s really driving U.S. homeownership growth in general. Rate has made a concerted effort to serve underserved borrower communities like this, so how does that fit into your strategy for reverse?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Allen: <\/strong>I think it\u2019s safe to say Rate did put a stake in the ground several years ago around serving the multicultural client \u2014 and specifically, Hispanic clients<\/a> \u2014 end to end.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re in the early stages as it relates to reverse. As a great example, we\u2019ve identified where we can move the needle while working on the technology<\/a> components to catch up, which in reverse is always a long journey.<\/p>\n

We took a look at all of Rate\u2019s retail loan officers, vice presidents who are trained and certified to participate in the multicultural business. They\u2019re bilingual, in many cases. All these VPs that are working with the Hispanic market and are also certified to do reverse, we\u2019ve aligned them to a Spanish language specialist. We\u2019ve seen some early success there, but we have a lot of work to do to fully engage in that strategy.<\/p>\n

Pierson: A recent report showed a <\/strong>large financial gap<\/strong><\/a> for many seniors who seek reverse mortgage counseling. It struck me as interesting, because some have argued that to grow the reverse mortgage market, you need to go after wealthier, non-needs-based clients<\/a>. But there\u2019s evidently many people who still need a reverse mortgage for emergency funds. How do you balance the needs of this group while growing sales through other types of borrowers?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Allen:<\/strong> It\u2019s a great question. In fact, we\u2019ll do a couple of sessions at the upcoming NRMLA Western Regional Meeting<\/a> on how we, as originators, should support the appropriate use of the appropriate product with the appropriate client at the right time.<\/p>\n

Proprietary product evolution is happening at light speed, based on the historical perspective in the industry. And I think that emergence of product complexity makes it harder for loan officers while creating a ton of incremental opportunity. I think the industry needs to continue focusing on, how do we help loan officers identify the right product for the right client at the right time?<\/p>\n

I bring that up because it\u2019s sort of connected to this question about product expansion, growing the pie and really identifying that next tranche of more strategic use cases who want to monetize their equity for better retirement outcomes. That\u2019s a massive opportunity for the industry and, frankly, for families and communities. People need to monetize their equity without the debt service.<\/p>\n

It is also true that we can\u2019t forget the legacy buyer in the space, the more needs-based client. Maybe they had a foreclosure<\/a> notice. Maybe they\u2019re running behind with taxes or they\u2019re inundated with unsecured debt. We know that 97% of people who go into retirement today do so with debt. Mortgage is a big piece<\/a> of that unsecured debt.<\/p>\n

While the industry is very enamored with pie growth and serving new clients with proprietary product innovation \u2014 and rightly so \u2014 it is equally important to stay focused on our legacy clients and serving those who are in most need, which was the catalyst for the industry to begin with.<\/p>\n

Pierson: Lastly, let\u2019s talk about home equity investments (HEIs) which have been a controversial product recently. There are lawsuits<\/a> being filed against providers all over the country. The products aren\u2019t just for senior borrowers, but they can compete against traditional reverse mortgages. How do you frame your client conversations around HEIs?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Allen:<\/strong> It\u2019s a big topic. I would say the existence of these home equity investment products and more creative HELOC programs \u2014 like Longbridge\u2019s HELOC for Seniors<\/a> and Finance of America\u2019s HomeSafe Second \u2014 send a very clear message that equity release is a really big deal. We need to help consumers access their equity in responsible ways in order to drive better retirement outcomes.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not an expert on the HEI business, but I think the important piece is about consumer education, disclosure and a well-trained sales force. So you think about third-party, independent counseling<\/a> that we\u2019ve had in reverse for years. I don\u2019t believe that\u2019s required for an HEI program. I do think you need this overlay of safeguards, depending on who you\u2019re serving.<\/p>\n

When it gets down to the client discussion, what I say to family members or our financial adviser<\/a> referral partners is, \u201cThe devil\u2019s in the details.\u201d You have to understand the product, and you\u2019ve got to work the math. These products can be very confusing.<\/p>\n

We have robust disclosures in mortgage banking. I think alternative product solutions are healthy, but they still require rigorous consumer safeguards, and I think the reverse mortgage industry, frankly, could be a good template to use when you start thinking about alternative products.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Jesse Allen arrived at Rate in late 2024 to lead its reverse mortgage division, he was immediately tasked with continuing the growth trajectory for the Chicago-based mortgage lending giant. Rate has long been a leading forward mortgage lender, ranking No. 9 nationally in 2025 with $45.6 billion in volume, according to Inside Mortgage Finance….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49404"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49404"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49404\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mk.gen.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}