For homeowners researching a reverse mortgage, the sheer number of loan options, rate structures, fees, and program variations can be overwhelming. Reverse mortgages — officially known as Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) — come with a wide range of features, and understanding how those features interact with a borrower’s age, home value, interest rate, and long-term goals can be difficult without expert guidance.

ARLO™ (All Reverse Loan Optimizer) was created to solve that problem. Introduced in 2017 by All Reverse Mortgage, Inc., ARLO™ is an interactive reverse-mortgage comparison engine designed to help homeowners explore real loan options — not generic estimates — across both FHA-insured HECMs and a variety of proprietary programs.

Purpose and Design

ARLO™ was built to give borrowers clearer insight into:

• Available reverse mortgage programs

• Real-time interest rates and APR

• Origination charges, closing costs, and lender credits

• Mortgage insurance premiums (where applicable)

• Principal Limit Factors (PLFs) — the HUD formula that determines how much a borrower qualifies for

• Long-term amortization, balance growth, and equity projections

The goal is to allow older homeowners to preview how different loan structures perform over time and understand which options may be better aligned with their individual financial circumstances.

As All Reverse Mortgage president Cliff Auerswald described at launch, the tool was intended as “a win for the consumer,” offering transparency while supporting informed decision-making.

What ARLO™ Does

Unlike traditional calculators that provide approximate numbers or single-scenario estimates, ARLO™ produces customized loan comparisons based on a borrower’s real inputs:

• Age(s) of borrower and non-borrowing spouse

• Home value

• Existing mortgage balance

• Local lending limits

• Rate environment

• Loan type and draw strategy

Borrowers can instantly compare outcomes across multiple products, including fixed-rate HECMs, adjustable HECMs, and proprietary jumbo options. The tool displays how loan balances evolve over time, how much equity remains under various scenarios, and how different choices affect long-term costs.

ARLO™ also provides real-time closing-cost projections, helping users understand the full cost of obtaining a reverse mortgage — both upfront and ongoing.

A 1,600-Question Knowledge Base

One of ARLO™’s defining features is its searchable library of more than 1,600 reverse mortgage questions and answers. Organized across nearly two dozen categories, the database covers topics ranging from:

• Eligibility

• Non-borrowing spouse rules

• Servicing and line-of-credit growth

• Loan maturity

• Property requirements

• Tax and insurance responsibilities

• Refinancing scenarios

Much of this content stems from real borrower inquiries submitted over more than a decade. Users can search for previously answered questions or submit new ones directly through the platform.

For questions not already in the database, ARLO™ provides individual responses, giving the system a degree of personalization not commonly found among reverse-mortgage education tools.

Expert Backing and Industry Authority

ARLO™’s content library and scenario analysis are backed by the expertise of Michael G. Branson, CEO of All Reverse Mortgage, Inc. Branson has more than 45 years of mortgage-banking experience, including two decades focused exclusively on reverse mortgages.

His background includes:

• Serving as a Regional Vice President at GE Mortgage Insurance Corporation

• Participating in the underwriting team that launched the first AAA-rated mortgage-backed securities in the early 1980s

• Helping to develop the first fixed-rate jumbo reverse mortgage in 2007

• Being cited in major publications including Forbes, Kiplinger, MarketWatch, Los Angeles Times, HousingWire, and Reverse Mortgage Daily

This depth of practical and academic experience informs ARLO’s answer engine and is a key factor behind its credibility.

How ARLO™ Stands Out

ARLO™ differs from other reverse mortgage calculators and comparison tools in several ways:

• Real-time data rather than generic ranges

• Multiple loan-program comparisons, including proprietary jumbo products

• Comprehensive amortization modeling

• Personalized answers to borrower questions

• A large, continually updated Q&A library

• No personal information required to receive detailed estimates

The platform has been recognized by industry trade publications for prioritizing borrower education rather than sales-driven outputs. The philosophy behind ARLO™ is that the most successful reverse mortgage outcomes come from better-informed borrowers.

Summary

ARLO™ has become one of the most robust and widely referenced reverse-mortgage education tools in the marketplace. By combining real-time rate comparisons, detailed financial projections, and a vast expert-curated knowledge base, ARLO™ offers homeowners an accessible way to understand complex reverse mortgage products before making decisions that impact their long-term financial security.

Whether exploring basic eligibility or evaluating an advanced planning scenario, ARLO™ provides clear, data-driven insights designed to help older homeowners make confident, well-informed choices about their home equity.