This meltdown economy is proof that traditional “I’ll never work again” retirement is a thing of the past...

Multiple income sources are essential to weather economic downturns (you know this won’t be the last) and to finance unexpected opportunity. Success in the decades-long extended living of 21st Century unretirement lies in flexibility and resourcefulness, especially when it comes to money.

That’s where your house, condominium or even cottage comes in. When real estate values are depressed, you still have tens of thousands of dollars, or hundreds or thousands, in home equity to build on and to tap into. Reverse mortgages are one way access this stored wealth without having to sell your real estate or repay the mortgage until some time in the future.

In unretirement, homeowners should expect to have the same accessibility to the money tied up in their home that they have to savings held in bank accounts...More on unretirement, “the 21st Century expanding celebration of extended living,” in Chapter One Best Friend, Worst Enemy, starting on page 5.