Last October, the Federal Housing Administration launched the Hope for Homeowners program to help underwater homeowners refinance. But mere hundreds of homeowners have been helped, and few lenders have climbed aboard.
If you're in trouble, don't wait for someone from the government to lend a hand. As soon as you think you may miss a payment, call your lender or loan servicer to establish that you are a responsible homeowner who wants to do the right thing. If you're lucky -- and especially if your setback is temporary -- your lender will offer a solution.
However, the reality is lenders are overwhelmed with these types of requests and have done little to help. Another option is to invest in the services of a Loan Modification Attorney.
You can call your lender yourself (and ask for the loss-mitigation department), but you'd do well to ask a loan modification attorney to mediate on your behalf
Intake Officers, such as Julie Fowler from Chase Residential Solutions, are like medics on the front lines of foreclosure, performing budget triage, reviewing worst-case scenarios and sorting out strategies. Julie says Loan Modification Attorneys have a direct line into the loss mitigation departments at all of the major lenders and servicers.
Julie and her team support Loan Modification Attorneys by working with homeowners directly on their behalf to minimize the fees charged by the Loan Modification Attorneys. Intake Officers look for big budget offenders, such as a large car loan or excessive cell-phone or cable bills. Trimming those can give clients the cushion they need to handle their mortgage payment. If that's not going to work, she explains the foreclosure process to them.
Reputable firms, such as those inside the national attorney network affiliated with Chase, have relationship inside the banks and understand how to use all available legal means necessary to achieve reasonable loan modification plans for homeowners. In fact, their Attorneys have performed over 5,000 successful loan modification plans in the past 2 years alone!
Simply stated, if you can't make your payments, can't sell and can't refinance, you're flirting with foreclosure. If you're determined to keep your home, consult a Loan Modification Attorney. Every state has its own rules and timeline and a Loan Modification Attorney can advise you of your rights and help you save your home.
