MY BUSINESS

‘They look at the money they have, and they look at the value of their house, and they say, “Hell, the kids don't need all that”’

Working for the love of it

75-year-old Maurice Melhopt works with fellow pensioners, helping them enjoy the twiglight years through reverse mortgages.

BY ERIC FRYKBERG

Maurice Mehlhopt entered the mortgage business late - and stayed late.

At 75, he is busy working with his own age cohort, helping them pay for a few luxuries with the proceeds of a reverse mortgage.

He does this two-and-a-half days a week, leaving plenty of time for golf and other hobbies.

How did you get into this business?

I thought I had finished my career in financial services.

My partner was offered a role in Christchurch with The Press newspaper; we had a young son together, so I thought, “Fine, I will go down there and retire.”

But then I ran into a guy I had known for years, who referred me to a someone with an “interesting proposition.” So I went to see him.

Unbelievably, a month prior he had jumped onto a plane, flown to New York and fronted up to Lehman Brothers bank. They had a franchise for a reversemortgage product and were looking for partners all around the world.

He said, “Reverse mortgages are going to be big. It’s all yours if you want it. Would you like to take it up and run with it?'

And we did. We launched the product about 20 years ago.

Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy during the Global Financial Crisis, what happened then?

We never heard from a receiver.

We had been paying Lehman a piece of our sales commission for the franchise, and, of course, when the bank went up, the franchise fell over.

But no-one ever approached us and said, “We gave you the rights” or what have you. So we just carried on.

What’s the part of your job you love?

Helping people solve their problems.

It’s amazing: you get clients who have been with a bank all their life; they have an overdraft facility and they retire and end up on the pension and they go to the bank and ask to extend their overdraft.

The bank says to them, “No, you’ve got only your pension. We are not going to extend your overdraft; in fact, we’re going to take it away”.

So people end up asset rich but cash poor.

So you help clients get some money from the value of their house. Why is this important to them?

They often say to me, “Maurice, it's the money we don't spend that is important. It’s important to know it’s there.”

At times like this, they’re thinking about their husband or wife.

They say to me, 'If I drop dead tomorrow, I want to know the money is sitting there [for my partner]. I want to know they don't need to go to any more bank managers, they just need to ring Maurice or ring Heartland Bank and the money will be there.”

So it’s peace of mind they’re buying. And to help people with that is just so rewarding. I love it.

What is the worst thing about your business?

I am not sure there is one. But there is one situation I feel for, though it is not that common.

It’s when a business is struggling and the bank won't give any more money and the proprietor is saying, “If I could just get another $100,000, I could make this business work”, and you can see Mum and Dad squirming a little bit, because they feel under pressure.

Mum and Dad don't have the money, but of course they have a house; they could take out a reverse mortgage and help their family.

Well, I don't go anywhere near those cases. I just say, “I’m sorry, I won't go there,” and you can see the relief on the parents' faces.

The whole elder-abuse thing is something you have to be aware of. Of course, that’s not elder abuse per se, but if the bank won't lend money, then Mum and Dad should not do so either.

What is the best thing about your business?

I love helping people who get to their mid-seventies and they expected to be dead but are hale and hearty; they look at the money they have, and they look at the value of their house, and they say, “Hell, the kids don't need all that”.

Fortunately, in 90 per cent of cases, the kids are saying, “Go for your life, Mum and Dad, go and enjoy it.” They love to see Mum and Dad doing stuff - and with a reverse mortgage they can do it.

It is a very rewarding product to be involved with.

If you had your life all over again, would you do this job?

Oh, gosh, yes. It's very rewarding and it’s only going to get bigger.

We are only playing with it at this stage.

What is your working day or week like?

It depends on the flow – the worst bit is all the bloody admin that goes with it – but overall, I work two to two-and-a-half days a week and that’s all I want to do. It’s lovely.

I could be a lot busier but two or three days a week is plenty.

It leaves me time to play a bit of golf. ✚