Bob Mason asked:


Who can Help Me Get A Loan Modification, Really???

What is the truth and what is hype about getting loan modifications done. That is a hard question to get answered, depending on who you are talking to.

The facts are this; there are a lot of people who say they can help and there are a lot of people who need help.

This also puts a lot of people, right in the middle of the bull’s eye of people who say they can help with a modification and want to charge you a big upfront fee for doing so, and when you give them your money, you are told one thing and then you find yourself waiting and waiting and waiting. 30 days turn into 60 days. Then it is 5 or 6 months and what is happening. Then you start calling other people or companies to help after you can’t get a hold of the people who took your money and said they were going to help.

Or, you call the bank directly and try to deal with them. Some people are very fortunate and are able to actually get someone to talk to that speaks English, and is able to help. Part of the problem with dealing with the bank directly is, beside the fact that they are simply imploded, is that they are going to ask you about your financials, and you will give them answers to questions over the phone. Here is half of the problem. A great number of people will answer everything the bank asks, and then get a typical response from the bank that you do not qualify for a loan modification.

Here is part of a bigger problem; they may actually qualify for a modification. The bank is not your uncle; they are not going to be sympathetic or empathetic. They have minimally paid people, taking information that will have a direct affect on your ability to save your house, or get a payment adjustment that you will be able to live with.

This is from an article in the Washington Post, written by Renea Merle, December 17th,2009, about Bank of America, and it’s inability to get loan modifications done promptly.

“The bank has come under criticism for lagging behind competitors in signing up borrowers to the program, known as Making Home Affordable. By November, Bank of America had registered only 15 percent, or about 160,000 customers, of the more than 1 million delinquent borrowers who are potentially eligible, according to Treasury Department data. That is a far smaller percentage than competitors such as J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup.

Only about 340,000 of the 1 million delinquent borrowers identified by Treasury are likely to survive the qualification process, Jack Schakett, Bank of America\’s credit loss mitigation strategies executive, said on a conference call with reporters. Many of the remaining distressed borrowers have abandoned their home or rented it to tenants, making them ineligible, he said. Others are unemployed and can\’t afford even lowered payments, he said.”

Doing simple math, does that mean that only one-third of homeowners will qualify?? Does that mean the odds are against homeowners that much?? What about self-employed, unemployed, second homes, etc.

It is not just Bank of America, all of the banks want to have a cookie cutter approach to qualifying a home-owner for a loan modification, and unfortunately, that is not the way to make things work for people. Too make things even worse, people who are charging people also want to have a cookie cutter approach when working with the bank.

What is the solution?? How can people get the help that is needed and how do you know who can help. Taking a financial analysis approach is the key. Putting all the cards on the table, and then sorting out the hand that you want to show the bank, is basically what needs to be done. There are more than one program available to homeowner’s.

The truth is that each case is different, and circumstances need to be evaluated, analyzed, and hard questions need to be asked. As I mentioned the bank is not your uncle, they are not your friend or a trusted confidant. They are a business, they have share holders and to you, Mr. or Ms. Homeowner, you are really nothing more than a loan number and either fall under the category of Performing Asset or Non-Performing Asset.

This basically means that if you are making your payments on time as agreed, you are a Performing Asset. If you have fallen on difficult times and have gotten behind in payments by a full 30 days, (not just 15 days and now are paying the banks junk fees, known as late payments), now you are a Non-Performing asset. This triggers off a series of reports and now you have fallen in a different category. The bank now sees that they may have a situation, and believe it, they have many situations.

Try calling the bank and asking for assistance on a loan modification and not being at least 30 days late, they will make you feel foolish, and worse will in some cases, tell you to call them back when you are 90 days late. Does this sound like who you want to help you. Sure the cost is free when dealing with the bank yourself, or is it?? The truth is it can cost you a lot more, like your house. So what is that worth to you? What does it cost to have someone help get a homeowner qualified or at least look and run the numbers and analyze the situation to see what potential program may work for you. It really is a complete package that needs to be looked at, not just your interest rate. Some peoples unsecured debt, (credit card debt) needs to be addressed to show the bank intent on the homeowners part to take control of the situation and be financially prudent.

Give us a call, we will look at your complete situation. Get the information from you that matters to getting something done. We have underwriters on staff that will analyze your situation and get your ratios in place or let you know what needs to be done. Then we will then have another conversation with in 12-24 hours usually, going over everything and discuss your options. In many cases after we have a authorization signed by the homeowner to allow us to speak to the bank on your behalf, we can get terms in place right away. Many times it will still take the bank 14-45 days to get the paperwork back to the homeowner, but terms have been established and can be verified. This is a very sensible and productive way to get positive results. You don’t have to pay until you see some results. We will get you qualified, pre-qualified with the lender, and in many cases terms in place with in days of our initial conversation.

I hope this helps you on your quest to get a mortgage loan modification approved.

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