Written by Michael D. Kent, as originally published in The Reverse Review.

It has been about two months since I began my position as president of Liberty Home Equity Solutions, Inc. in Rancho Cordova, California, just outside of Sacramento, and I have learned one thing for sure: It is hot out here!

Coming from the San Francisco Bay Area, I had been lulled into believing the beautiful temperatures I enjoy during the summer were somehow consistent throughout California. I now know just how naive I have been.

Sacramento is a beautiful city with so much to do. The surrounding areas offer a great deal of outdoor and recreational activities that I have come to expect from living in California. However, I have also learned I need to adapt my lifestyle to adjust to the significantly higher summer temperatures.

I now take my daily run very early, usually around 5:30 a.m., before the temperature really begins to rise. I have also forced myself to learn how to operate my programmable thermostat at home, so I can set the AC to come on an hour before I arrive at night. I have made other adjustments, so I can better navigate this new environment.

A few weeks ago, the director of the CFPB, Richard Cordray, issued a commentary on the marketing and advertising practices of the reverse mortgage industry. Much of his commentary was not exactly complimentary. The bureau’s claim was that, after extensive review and interviews with senior Americans, the industry’s approach to advertising and marketing the reverse mortgage product needs work. In fact, the bureau claims that seniors’ comments from interviews lead them to believe the advertising was confusing and incomplete when it came to describing the reverse mortgage product. Director Cordray also said that certain ads were misleading seniors.

Now, we all have our opinions of the various regulatory agencies and their oversight rules as they apply to our industry. Some people agree and others don’t. As with all things regulatory and political, you also have your fringe folks. However, I think we can all agree that in the world of regulatory oversight, it is getting very hot out here!

I have read Director Cordray’s comments several times. What I have come away with is it does not really matter if I believe they are accurate or not; what matters is that I adapt to my new environment.

Adapting may include changing. I am not yet certain of what that change may involve, but I do know there are questions that need to be asked and answered:

-Do our ads clearly inform potential borrowers of program requirements? -Do our ads clearly and accurately describe the reverse mortgage program? -Do our ads inadvertently mislead potential borrowers? -Do our ads represent our company’s core values?

In addition to these questions is the always present question: Can we do better?

While the reactions to Director Cordray’s comments have been both positive and negative, for me the most important takeaway is best represented by a quote from Charles Darwin: “In the struggle for survival, the fittest win out at the expense of their rivals because they succeed in adapting themselves best to their environment.”