## Facts

- Caldwell Jones obtained a reverse mortgage secured by his principal residence; the loan required no payments during his lifetime but made full repayment immediately due upon his death and the property ceasing to be a borrower’s principal residence.
- Caldwell’s wife, Vanessa Jones, was not a named borrower because she did not meet the product’s minimum age requirement.
- The mortgage was assigned to Live Well Financial, Inc.
- Caldwell died less than a year after origination; Vanessa and the couple’s minor child continued to live in the home.
- Live Well demanded repayment and initiated foreclosure when the loan was not repaid.
- Vanessa (individually and on behalf of the estate and minor child) sued to enjoin foreclosure, relying on 12 U.S.C. § 1715z-20(j), which provides HUD “may not insure” a reverse mortgage unless repayment is deferred until the “homeowner” dies or sells the home, defining “homeowner” to include the homeowner’s spouse.

## Issues

1. Whether 12 U.S.C. § 1715z-20(j), which restricts HUD’s ability to insure certain reverse mortgages, also restricts a private lender’s contractual right to demand repayment and foreclose upon the borrower’s death when a non-borrowing spouse remains in the home.

## Decision

- The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal for failure to state a claim.
- Section 1715z-20(j) was held to limit only HUD’s authority to insure reverse mortgages, not a lender’s independent contractual enforcement rights.
- Because the mortgage contract permitted acceleration and foreclosure upon the borrower’s death, the statute did not bar Live Well from proceeding with foreclosure.

## Legal Principles

- Statutory language stating the HUD Secretary “may not insure” a mortgage unless conditions are met regulates eligibility for federal insurance and does not, without more, alter private mortgage contract remedies.
- A mortgage’s potential noncompliance with federal insurance conditions may affect insurability but does not itself render the contract’s foreclosure provisions unenforceable between private parties.
- Courts will not infer a private right of action or an implied contract modification from a statute focused on agency authority absent clear congressional direction.

## Conclusion

The court held that 12 U.S.C. § 1715z-20(j) operates as a limitation on HUD’s insurance program and does not prevent a private lender from enforcing reverse-mortgage terms allowing repayment and foreclosure upon the borrower’s death, even when a surviving non-borrowing spouse remains in the home.


Estate of Jones v. Live Well Fin., Inc., 902 F.3d 1337 (11th Cir. 2018)