Jeffrey Taylor, longtime Reverse Mortgage figurehead and a 35-year veteran of the financial services industry, passed away Tuesday in his home in Greensboro, N.C., RMD has learned.

During his Reverse Mortgage career, Taylor led Wells Fargo’s senior products group, which became the leading retail originator of reverse mortgages. He has served as a guide, mentor, and thought leader to many in the industry over the years. 

“He had a passion for what we do,” said John Button, CEO of ReverseVision, during opening remarks for the company’s annual UserCon conference in San Diego Wednesday morning. “He was an infectiously positive person and a great guy to be around.”

Attendees of the conference observed a moment of silence in Taylor’s honor.

Taylor retired from his role with Wells Fargo in 2009 and has since led Wendover Consulting, a company he founded during the 1980s.

He was a Certified Mortgage Banker through the Mortgage Bankers Association, and was the founding chair for the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association.

“I think it is accurate to state that if not for Jeff Taylor, there would not be the reverse mortgage industry as we know it today,” NRMLA president and CEO Peter Bell said in a statement honoring Taylor. “There would not be a NRMLA. Many of us in the reverse mortgage business would not have enjoyed the interesting career opportunities we’ve had if not for the trail blazed by Jeff.”

He served as a chair for the MBA’s School of Mortgage Banking and was a vice chair and advisory board member for the Bryan School of Business and Economics at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. 

Written by Elizabeth Ecker