For the Upside Down There May Be Hope
June 10, 2008
I was speaking with a homeowner yesterday who was excitedly telling of how the lender had renegotiated her loan and now she can stay in the house and it will no longer be in the process of foreclosing. I should have asked "Which lender?" but I did not. Our experience has been that some lenders have set up loss mitigation departments that are staffed with knowledgeable people who are willing to look for solutions that keep owners in their homes. Other lenders seem to give owners looking for help the runaround.
You may have heard of HOPE NOW. It is an alliance between counselors, servicers, investors and other mortgage market participants to maximize outreach efforts to at-risk homeowners and help them stay in their homes.
At-risk homeowners should contact their lender as soon as they know that they will have difficulty meeting their mortgage payments. The sooner you call, the more options that will be available to you. You can also call the Homeowners HOPE Hotline - 1-800-995 HOPE. This hotline is staffed by HUD approved credit counselors who can guide you through possible options such as a loan workout, a loan modification or a repayment plan.
ACORN is another organization that is helping at-risk homeowners. Locally they can be reached at (909) 806-4715 or their web site at www.acorn.org/sanbernardino.
Lenders really do not want your home back. They know that they will lose more money in a foreclosure than they will in a short sale or in some other modification of the loan. I encourage owners who really do not want to move to contact their lender directly or to take advantage of the help that HOPE NOW and ACORN offer.
I was speaking with a homeowner yesterday who was excitedly telling of how the lender had renegotiated her loan and now she can stay in the house and it will no longer be in the process of foreclosing. I should have asked "Which lender?" but I did not. Our experience has been that some lenders have set up loss mitigation departments that are staffed with knowledgeable people who are willing to look for solutions that keep owners in their homes. Other lenders seem to give owners looking for help the runaround.
You may have heard of HOPE NOW. It is an alliance between counselors, servicers, investors and other mortgage market participants to maximize outreach efforts to at-risk homeowners and help them stay in their homes.
At-risk homeowners should contact their lender as soon as they know that they will have difficulty meeting their mortgage payments. The sooner you call, the more options that will be available to you. You can also call the Homeowners HOPE Hotline - 1-800-995 HOPE. This hotline is staffed by HUD approved credit counselors who can guide you through possible options such as a loan workout, a loan modification or a repayment plan.
ACORN is another organization that is helping at-risk homeowners. Locally they can be reached at (909) 806-4715 or their web site at www.acorn.org/sanbernardino.
Lenders really do not want your home back. They know that they will lose more money in a foreclosure than they will in a short sale or in some other modification of the loan. I encourage owners who really do not want to move to contact their lender directly or to take advantage of the help that HOPE NOW and ACORN offer.
posted by shirley harry at 8:28 AM
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