In March 2009, the Obama Administration announced a new mortgage modification program that promised relief for the millions of homeowners behind on their mortgages or in foreclosure. Program guidelines can be found at https://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/reports/modification_program_guidelines.pdf .
On Tuesday the Treasury Department released a report which indicates that only 400,000 borrowers have even been offered help while only 235,000 have actually entered the program. There are wide disparaties in which mortgage companies are actually getting loan modifications done with JP Morgan Chase having 79,000 loans in modification while Bank of America has only 28,000.
A problem with the program is that the first step provides only a trial modification for homeowners, requiring them to make three monthly payments before being considered for a full modification. In September the program requires mortgage companies to begin telling some homeowners that they do not qualify for a full, long term modification. For those lucky few homeowners who are in a trial modification, it will likely come as a unpleasant surprise to learn that they’ve paid into the program only to get rejected in the long run.
What’s most concerning is the relatively small number of homeowners who have been considered for the programs, a fact that is particularly disturbing given the millions of Americans who are behind on their mortgages or in foreclosure. If you’re finding it difficult to get through to your mortgage company, you’re not alone. Deloitte and Touche reports that call volume for mortgage servicers is up 500%. If you have submitted a loan modification package and don’t have an answer, keep in mind that in 2008, loan modificaiton employees were responsible for reviewing 50-80 files while they are now reviewing 200-300 files….you may be waiting for an answer to your loan modification request for a long time.
Don’t go it alone when trying to navigate this mortgage crisis. Hire an experienced real estate attorney to help you. Contact me at www.mattweidnerlaw.com.