Helping Older Adults Navigate Reverse Mortgages After the Eaton Fire

On May 10, 2025, Supervisor Kathryn Barger, in partnership with the Los Angeles County Aging & Disabilities Department (AD), the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA), the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA), Bet Tzedek Legal Services, and other local partners, hosted a Reverse Mortgage Workshop at the MonteCedro Senior Living Community in Altadena.

The workshop was designed to support older adults whose homes were damaged or destroyed in the Eaton Fire, with a focus on those holding reverse mortgages. Attendees received information on their rights and responsibilities, and gained critical guidance on how property loss may affect their loans.

“We’re here today to provide some very important information to the fire survivors of the Altadena community,” said Emilio Salas, Executive Director of LACDA. “Seniors with reverse mortgages are in a unique and vulnerable situation. Their loans were secured by their homes—homes that may now be gone.”

With over 300 households in the Altadena and Palisades fire areas holding reverse mortgages, many are left facing difficult decisions. The workshop brought together experts from local, state, and federal agencies to explain key terms, financial implications, and next steps.

For longtime Altadena resident Elvia Battoe, the session offered a chance to begin understanding her options: “I have a reverse mortgage. I don’t know what choices I have. That’s why I came here—to help me focus and figure out my next step.”

In addition to presentations, attendees had access to resource tables offering case management, housing assistance, and support services for older adults, coordinated by the Aging & Disabilities Department and partner agencies.

Click to watch the story coverage by the L.A. County Channel.