There is no minimum income required and no monthly repayments. And what's more, with a reverse mortgage, you do not stand the chance of losing your home. The downside to a reverse mortgage In every story, there is always the other side of the coin. While reverse mortgages have their advantages, they also have a downside. Mortgage investors purchase these secondary market loans with mortgage interest rates that are undesirable to the regular homebuyer. These investors are actually the ones who set the standards in mortgage interest rates. When news of a growing economy erupts, the Fed will raise the mortgage interest rates in an effort to slow down economic growth and lower stock prices. But even then, interest-only mortgage rate programs are made available to borrowers who want to avoid incurring penalties when taking large equity sums. Below are some interest-only mortgage rate programs made available to you: One Month Libor Loan - The interest-only mortgage rate of this loan is the sum of the LIBOR index plus a margin of 0.125%. Interest-only mortgages have also gone mainstream so virtually anyone can borrow money with this type of loan. Temporary Payment Periods The payment periods for interest-only mortgages almost never run for the entire term of the loan. Even with a fixed rate mortgage, interest-only mortgages are still bound to be only temporary. You can get the best possible mortgage rate with a down payment that is greater than 20%. Higher mortgage rates are expected if the down payment is less than 5% since the beginning equity is smaller and provides less collateral. Discount points are another way to move mortgage rates. Lower mortgage rates usually means higher points paid on your loan. A positive credit history would spell good news for mortgage refinancing. However, if credit is bad or if the relationship between debt and income is skewed, then mortgage refinancing is not the right option. Maintaining a positive balance between income and debt levels is strenuous for most people. At the rate with which home equity loans and credit lines are selling, it's easy to see that a lot of homeowners have succumbed to second lines in order to cover their bills.