So, you heard about the really nice low interest rates people are getting on their mortgages, and you thought "hey...I'd like to save money every month to put back in to my budget". You made a call or two, and found out "I'm sorry, Mr./Ms. Homeowner, but we can't help you due to the amount you owe on your home vs. the amount your home is worth in today's market". So, you go back to chugging along, thinking all these stories you are hearing from people and in the news is just a bunch of hooey. Maybe, you're even a little upset because you paid for an appraisal thinking your ability to get today's nice low interest rates was pretty much a sure thing. I expect more and more people to run in to the "prepaid appraisal but no loan" situation even more with the new Home Valuation Code of Conduct rolled out.
Well, life goes on. And, so do you. Time goes by, and now you are hearing about the Home Affordable Programs. You think "hey...this sounds a little different from the stuff I was hearing before. Maybe this new program really is something I am eligible for that will help keep me/us in our home, because it's starting to get to the point that I'm not sure how long I/we can hang on." Maybe things have put a strain on your budget, because your income has declined and/or your mortgage payments are scheduled to go up.
So you pick up the phone and this time you call your existing lender...at least you TRY to call your existing lender. After repeated attempts, endless time on hold or trapped in "phone system never-never land", being transferred here there and everywhere, then being told "NO...we can't help you", with no clear explanation why you are not eligible when all the reports you are hearing/reading make it seem like you should be. "What the heck does it mean I'm too underwater to be helped, that my 2nd lender won't subordinate, that Mortgage Insurance Companies are not cooperating? I JUST WANT TO SURVIVE THIS ECONOMIC DOWNTURN AND STAY IN MY HOME!!!!"
Is this where you are at, Southern Oregon homeowners? Have you been going along, scraping money together to make your mortgage payments on time each month? Call me! I just hate to take "no" for an answer, and don't think that you should accept this until you have explored every possible avenue that is available to you.
No, I do not believe in making it a business to apply for Note Modifications for homeowners. My first thought about Note Modifications is "why the heck would anyone pay that kind of money to have someone do what they really should/must do for themselves anyway? To save a little frustration? How much is simplicity worth to people?" But, I AM in the business of helping people find the best home loans that may be available to them, whether that is to purchase a home or investment property, or in the theme of this article:
- A traditional refinance, where you have sufficient equity and meet the underwriting criteria for a loan that will give you enough savings to justify the costs associated with refinancing
- A Home Affordable Refinance (or a recommendation you apply for a Home Affordable Modification, if refinancing is not an alternative with info on what you should expect during this process) the new program that was rolled out for homeowners whose existing loans are with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac
- A Short Refinance, where none of the above options are available to you, and you would rather stay in your home than sell it via short sale or lose it through foreclosure
So, if you've been told "no" when attempting to refinance or sell your home through short sale, but you don't want your home to go back to the bank through foreclosure, and you've kept up with your payments so far, would you call me and spend 20-30 minutes on the phone with me so we can go through your circumstances and the various alternatives? Or, if you prefer, go online and fill out the "short application" at www.Quality4Loans.com and I'll call you at the times you leave in the comments there (please give me a few different time alternatives, as there are a lot of folks looking in to these programs). I really want to see the level of homes being foreclosed on here in the Rogue Valley go down, don't you?
See you at the closing table!
Karen Cooper - OR/CA Mortgage Consultant - ans.comwww.Quality4Lo
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