UNA NUEVA MODALIDAD DE HIPOTECA: LA HIPOTECA INVERSA.

Abstract

Act 41/2007 of 7 December brought into Spanish legislation something termed «the reverse mortgage», a new kind of mortgage that has already become known to other countries' legislations. The reverse mortgage's peculiarity resides in the fact that it concerns a debt secured with a special mortgage on the borrower's regular place of residence, designed for people who are elderly or in a situation of severe or heavy dependence, in which the client receives a lump sum or regular sum that generally works as a pension supplement, for a limited time or the client's remaining lifetime, and the repayment obligation arises at the time of the death of the borrower, who at all times retains ownership of his or her property. This is the primary difference between the reverse mortgage and other, alreadyexisting Spanish institutions that share the same intent of covering basic needs, such as the life annuity and the support contract, traditionally known as the «lifetime support» contract. In regulating this new, unique mode of mortgaging, legislators have introduced significant exceptions in the general rules for mortgages. Stress is laid on the non-application of the interest guarantee limit and the establishment of early maturity if the property is transferred.