| How To Keep Your Home
|
The best
advice you will ever hear when you know that you
are having financial trouble is
COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE, and
COMMUNICATE!
|
- Open and respond to
notices in the mail.
- Contact your mortgage
lender immediately and ask them for help.
- Contact a certified counseling agency or call
211
(if available in your area).
- Know what kind of monthly
shortfall you have by making a list of your
monthly spending and comparing it to your
monthly income.
- Reduce your spending by
eliminating a monthly payment like a cell phone,
cable TV or a second car.
- Take stock of your assets
like jewelry, investments, or whole life
insurance that if sold, may help bring you up
to date on your mortgage payment.
- Do not sign over anything
unless you have a reputable attorney or
homeownership counselor review it.
- If you find you are 30
days past due, your lender will expect the past
payment along with the current payment, late
fee and interest. Do not spend money that you
have allocated for the mortgage on other things.
You will need this money to work yourself out
of the problem eventually.
- If you feel that keeping
your home is not an option, contact your
mortgage lender or servicer (which is the name
on the statement that you write your mortgage
payment to) and ask for a person that can help
you explore your options to minimize your
loss.
|
| |
| The Workout
Process - Loss Mitigation |
It’s
common practice to begin the workout process
with the servicer, asking specifically for the
loss mitigation department (if one exists).
Always keep track of the time, date and person
you talked to. Confirm all agreements in
writing. |
A workout
package from the lender will require the
following documents: |
- Completed application
form
- Pay stubs for income
verification
- W-2 forms from the
previous year
- Completed budget
- Hardship letter
explaining situation
|
| It may take a Loss
Mitigation Specialist (your lender) a few
weeks or even months to report back to you with
the decision about the workout plan.
It’s important to regularly check with
them about the status so that the request
doesn't get lost in the meantime. Also note that
the collection department may still be
“attempting to collect a debt,” so
you should be aware that the phone calls
won’t stop when the loss mitigation
department is working on a
solution. |
| |
| Unresponsive and
unhelpful servicers are out there, regardless
of the incentives provided by mortgage insurers
or investors. When a servicer/lender does not
respond to a work-out proposal it is appropriate
to contact the owner of the risk. Exactly who
this is can be difficult to figure out. You
can look at original mortgage documents - a
charge for mortgage insurance and who it is
paid to should be on the settlement statement.
If you have private mortgage insurance (PMI),
you may be entitled to a partial claim. Make
sure you know who your insurance provider
is. |
| |
| Under the 1995 amendment
to the Truth in Lending Act the servicer is
required, upon written request, to provide you
with the name, address and telephone number of
the mortgage holder. |
| |
| Helpful Contact
Information
|
- Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) Home Office:
1-888-297-8685
|
- Federal National Mortgage
Association (Fannie Mae) Home Office:
(202)752-7000
|
- Federal National Mortgage
Association (Fannie Mae) Regional Offices:
Midwestern (312) 368-6200 (Contact the one where
the servicer you’re working with is
located): IL, IN, IA, MI, MN, NE, ND, OH, SD,
WI
|
|
|
- Rural Development:
1-800-793-8861
|
- Veterans Administration
Central Office: 1-800-827-1000
|
- Mortgage Guaranty
Insurance Corporation (MGIC):
1-800-272-4071
|
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