Key facts
- Graceful's Lifestyle Agreement has a minimum age of 75, versus 62 for FHA-insured HECMs, Frankowska said
- Frankowska said HECM endorsements fell to 24,182 in fiscal 2026 from 28,172 in fiscal 2025, the lowest since fiscal 2003
- Under a home reversion, a homeowner sells a share of future ownership rights for a lump sum, income or both, and keeps the right to live there
- Frankowska said Graceful imported UK practices including mandatory independent counseling, a suitability assessment and a vulnerable customer policy
- Frankowska said Graceful is starting with anchor partners to fund the portfolio before seeking larger institutions
Anna Frankowska, founder and CEO of Graceful Finance, is pitching home reversion products to US seniors, she said in written comments to HousingWire's Reverse Mortgage Daily published November 9, 2026. The company's Lifestyle Agreement is positioned as an alternative to reverse mortgages and other home equity lending tools.
Under a home reversion structure, a homeowner sells a share of future ownership rights in the home in exchange for a lump sum, regular income or a combination of both, and keeps the right to live in the home for life without mortgage or rent payments. Frankowska said no loan is involved, so no interest builds up against the home, and that pricing is driven mostly by the home's value, housing market performance and life expectancy.
The product's minimum age is 75, above the 62 minimum for Federal Housing Administration-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages and the typical 55-plus eligibility for many proprietary reverse mortgage products. Frankowska said high interest rates reduce what a reverse mortgage borrower can access, and that HECM endorsements fell 14.2% year over year to 24,182 in fiscal 2026 from 28,172 in fiscal 2025, the lowest level since fiscal 2003.
Frankowska launched Graceful about four years ago to adapt a product more common in Europe to the US market, starting in Florida. She said reverse mortgage lenders and financial advisers have been receptive, viewing home reversion as another tool for clients. She said Graceful imported UK practices including mandatory independent counseling, a suitability assessment, a vulnerable customer policy that classifies all elderly participants as vulnerable by default, plain-language disclosures, a trusted contact requirement and a comparison process.