The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association, or NRMLA, is an organization with a membership made up of lenders involved in the reverse mortgage industry.

According to NRMLA’s web site, the association was founded in 1997 with the goals of educating consumers about reverse mortgages, promoting reverse mortgage (RM) lending in the media, improving the reverse mortgage industry’s professionalism, and providing training for lenders. They also uphold a “Code of Conduct and Best Practices” and advocate government policies favorable for reverse mortgage lenders.

Their web site lists a number of benefits which are made available to members of the association. These include newsletters, an online listing in their directory of lenders, discounted informational booklets to give to potential borrowers, discounted entrance to RM conferences, access to members-only information on their web site, and Committee participation. The dues help NRMLA in its work to promote favorable govt. policies as well.

Non-members can access information on the web site about upcoming association events, press releases, links to media news reports on the industry, the “NRMLA Washington Update” electronic newsletter, and contact information for the association’s staff. Areas of the web site which non-members cannot access are usually indicated by an orange square with the words “Members Only” next to it. A few examples of members-only information include an article on how reverse mortgage lenders can comply with the “Do Not Call” list, an analysis of the implications brought about by additional different RM “products” which are now available, and various national & state statistics. A membership application in PDF format, which includes information on the amount of dues to be paid, is available on the web site as well.

The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association also operates a web site for consumers, which is called ReverseMortgage.org. It features a reverse mortgage calculator, information on how this type of mortgage works, a directory that allows borrowers to locate lenders in their state which are members of NRMLA. It includes details on both the positive and negative aspects of rev. mortgages. Under the “Borrower Profiles” menu, it provides details on how various individual borrowers used reverse mortgages to their benefit. The web site offers free consumer guides which can be downloaded in PDF format or ordered by mail.

Basically, the NRMLA helps mortgage lenders improve and promote their businesses, while assisting consumers in learning about RM and finding local lenders of this type.