I’m Late with My Mortgage Payment- HELP

 Home Affordable Modifications    Avoid Foreclosure Free Counseling 

Are you having a hard time making your loan payment? Are you hearing about all those loan modification programs on the radio and TV and do not know who to trust?  Did you know that there is free counseling that is available to you through government programs?

You are not alone- there are millions of families who are just like you who have either missed one or more of their mortgage payments and still desperately want to keep their home.

If you can no longer afford to make your monthly loan payments, you may qualify for a loan modification to make your monthly mortgage payment more affordable.

Am I eligible for a Home Affordable Modification? Answer these questions:

1.  Is your home your primary residence?
2. Is the amount you owe on your first mortgage equal to or less than $729,750?
3. Are you having trouble paying your mortgage?
   For example, have you had a significant increase in your mortgage payment OR reduction in your income since you got your current loan OR have you suffered a hardship that has increased your expenses (like medical bills)?
4. Did you get your current mortgage before January 1, 2009?
5. Is your payment on your first mortgage (including principal, interest, taxes, insurance and homeowner’s association dues, if applicable) more than 31% of your current gross income?

 If you answered yes to these questions- you may qualify for a loan affordable modification Click here

If you have missed 1 or more of your mortgage payments- call your mortgage lender immediately or call 1-888-995-HOPE (4673) to reach a HUD-approved housing counselor. Their counseling is free.

The Home Team Girls want you to keep your home. Call us for any questions and we will direct you to people who can help. If you can not get a loan modification, call us to see if a short sale if right for you.

Avoiding Mortgage Scams

 

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Investment properties, Homes For Sale, Relocations, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Serving the Military and Veterans, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

Avoiding Mortgage Scams

Fraudulent foreclosure “rescue” professionals use half truths and outright lies to sell services that promise relief, but fail to deliver. In reality, they make a quick profit by charging high fees or collecting mortgage payments, and keeping the money, rather than passing it on to the lender. Usually they use advertising messages like “Stop Foreclosure Now!” They are also known to use a variety of tactics to take your money, and sometimes your home as well. Knowing what types of scams are most common is the best way to avoid being conned.

 Types of Mortgage Scams:

Phony Counseling:   Some scam artists tell their victims that they can negotiate a deal with their lender if they pay a fee first. They tell them not to contact their lender and to let the “negotiator” handle the details. Once the fee is paid, the crook takes off with their money without contacting the lender.

 Bait and Switch: Other con artists trick their victims into signing documents for a new loan to make the existing mortgage current. Unfortunately the distressed homeowner could be surrendering the title of the house to a scam artist in exchange for a worthless or expensive “rescue” loan.

 Rent-to-Buy Scheme:  Some victims are told to surrender the title of their home as part of a deal that allows them to stay in the home as a renter, and buy it back during the next few years. But deals like this usually are so expensive that buying back the home becomes impossible. In the end, they lose their home and the scam artist takes off with the equity that they had built up.

 Bankruptcy Foreclosure: A few of the fraudsters may promise to negotiate with the victim’s lender or get refinancing on their behalf if they pay a fee in advance. Instead, they pocket the fee and file for bankruptcy in the homeowner’s name — sometimes without their knowledge.

 How to Find Legitimate Help

Homeowners who are having trouble paying their mortgage should contact their lender immediately. They may be able to negotiate a new repayment schedule. For more information, read “Mortgage Payments Sending You Reeling? Here’s What to Do,” at http://ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/homes/rea04.shtm

To learn more about shopping for mortgages, visit http://www.ftc.gov/credit and click on “Mortgages/ Real Estate.”

 Who to Contact if You’ve Been the Victim of a Mortgage Scam

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, contact: http://www.ftc.gov/ or 877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261.

  In general, be suspicious of:

• Anyone who wants the deed to your house for any reason, whether it’s to clean up your credit or obtain special” financing from an investor.

• Anyone who offers to rent your house back to you until you can get back on your feet.

• Lenders who encourage you to borrow more than you need or more than the value of your home.

• Terms that change at the last minute or offer next-day approval based on prepayments or up-front fees.

• Forms you do not understand or that contain blank spaces “to be filled in later.”

• Beware of phony credit counseling agencies charging high fees for financial counseling services you can get for little or no charge through non-profit agencies.

Red Flags for Mortgage Scams

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Investment properties, Homes For Sale, Relocations, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Serving the Military and Veterans, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

Making home more afforable program

Act now to get the help you need through the Making Home Affordable Program. This part of the President’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan was created to help millions of homeowners refinance or modify their mortgages to a payment that is affordable, both now and in the future. 

If you can no longer afford to make your monthly loan payments, you may qualify for a loan modification to make your monthly mortgage payment more affordable.

 

Millions of borrowers who are current, but having difficulty making their payments and borrowers who have already missed one or more payments may be eligible.

 

Am I eligible for a Home Affordable Modification?

 

Answer these questions:

1. Is your home your primary residence?
2. Is the amount you owe on your first mortgage equal to or less than $729,750?
3. Are you having trouble paying your mortgage?

For example, have you had a significant increase in your   mortgage payment OR reduction in your income since you got your current loan OR have you suffered a hardship that has increased your expenses (like medical bills)?

1. Did you get your current mortgage before January 1, 2009?
2. Is your payment on your first mortgage (including principal, interest, taxes, insurance and homeowner’s association dues, if applicable) more than 31% of your current gross income?

                        Note: if you are uncertain, click here to determine

 

If you have answered yes to all of these questions, you may qualify for a loan modification program.  Only the servicer of your loan can tell you if you qualify. To qualify, you will generally need to show that you have adequate income to make the reduced payments on an ongoing basis and that modification is an appropriate option given the characteristics of your mortgage and the value of your home.

The next step is to gather the information you will need when you speak to a housing counselor or the servicer of your mortgage.  The number should be on your statement.

 

This includes:

 

CHECKLIST

 

1. Information about the monthly gross (before tax) income of your household, including recent pay stubs if you receive them or documentation of income you receive from other sources.
2. Your most recent income tax return.
3. Information about your savings and other assets
4. Information about your first mortgage, such as your monthly mortgage statement.
5. Information about any second mortgage or home equity line of credit on the house. 
6.  Account balances and minimum monthly payments due on all of your credit cards.
7. Account balances and monthly payments on all your other debts such as student loans and car loans.
8. A letter describing any circumstances that caused your income to be reduced or expenses to be increased (job loss, divorce, illness, etc.) if applicable. 

For more click here.

 

Helping homeowners in the Sacramento area with their Real Estate needs.

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Investment properties, Homes For Sale, Relocations, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

 

 

 

Qualifications tightend as mortgage interest rates lower

Mortgage rates are near historic lows, spurring an increase in mortgage applications and applications to refinance.  However, most financial institutions have tightened their loan underwriting standards, making it more difficult for home buyers to qualify for the best rates.  In many cases, borrowers must issue a down payment of at least 20 percent; borrow $729,750 or less; have a credit score of at least 720; carry low debt relative to reliable income; buy in an area where home prices are relatively stable; and use a community bank rather than a national bank, to qualify for the best rates.
 

·      Most of the risky loan packages, such as “stated income” loans, where borrowers were not required to document their income, and option adjustable-rate mortgages, where consumers could choose to pay less than the interest due, are no longer available.  Some financial institutions offer interest-only loans, but they can be quite costly.

 

·      The majority of today’s mortgage loans are through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).  Combined, the government sector accounts for 87 percent of mortgages.  Purely private financing is rare.

 

·      The government entities purchase and/or guarantee loans up to a certain limit.  In high-cost areas, such as most areas of California, the conforming loan limit is $729,750.  The best interest rates are offered on conforming loans.  Jumbo loans – those that exceed $729,750 – are more expensive and can cost a quarter-point to a full percentage point more.

 

·      Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also have added a quarter-point “adverse market delivery charge” due to declining home prices.  They also have instituted “risk-based pricing,” which raises fees on borrowers with credit scores of less than 720.  Borrowers purchasing a condominium and putting down less than 15 percent also will pay more for a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan.

 

·      Borrowers with a down payment of less than 20 percent also are required to take out private mortgage insurance.  Premiums have increased in most parts of the country, including California.

 

·      Consumers without a 20 percent down payment may be eligible for a mortgage loan through the FHA, which accepts down payments as low as 3.5 percent.  The FHA charges an upfront mortgage insurance premium of 1.75 percent, which can be added to the loan, in addition to a monthly premium.

 

·      Although rare, the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) and U.S. Dept. of Agriculture offer loans in rural areas with no down payment or mortgage insurance requirements.

 

To read the full story, please click here

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Investment properties, Homes For Sale, Relocations, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

 

 

Fed adopts program to stem foreclosures

This week’s C.A.R. Mortgage Update contains information Freddie Mac, curbing foreclosures, credit unions, and financial roadblocks to homeownership.

Fed adopts program to stem foreclosures

 The Federal Reserve recently announced it will seek to renegotiate mortgages it owns that might otherwise enter foreclosure, according to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke. Under the program, the Fed could reduce what a homeowner owes on a mortgage; lower the interest rate; lengthen the term of a loan; or take other steps to prevent a loan from defaulting. The Federal Reserve’s program will focus on reducing the amount of principal owed by those at risk of foreclosure, especially those with loan balances exceeding 125 percent of the estimated value of their property. It is unclear how many homeowners could benefit from the program, and most individual borrowers will likely not know if their mortgages are owned by the Federal Reserve. If eligible for a loan modification, the homeowner would work with mortgage servicer and not the government directly. To read the full story, please click here

For any questions concerning your real estate situation- feel free to give us a call and we can put you in touch with professionals to help you through this tough time.

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Re-locations, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

More lenders allow “early workout” loan alterations

More lenders allow “early workout” loan alterations

 Borrowers with loans owned by Fannie Mae no longer have to be behind in payments in order to qualify for a loan modification.  Borrowers facing financial difficulty, such as losing a source of income, now can apply for an early workout, loan modification or also know as  loan alteration.  Under Fannie Mae’s program, borrowers who qualify will enter into a trial period of reduced payments, usually for four months.  If the reduced payments are made on time each month during the trial period, the modified mortgage terms may become permanent. 

 

For referrals on Loan Modifiaction programs and help – we have people that may be of assistance.

Call  Kathy -916-759-2147

To read the full story, please click here:

          http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-harney21-2008dec21,0,5965944.story

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

 

Revising loan modifications 53 % defaulted again

Revising loan modifications

 As many as 53 percent of modified loans redefaulted within the first six months of the year, leading some critics to believe the initial modified loan payment was unaffordable for the majority of homeowners.  Prior to agreeing to a mortgage modification, homeowners should create a realistic budget to determine how much they can afford each month for a mortgage payment.  To help create a budget, consumers can visit the Internal Revenue Service’s Web site, www.irs.gov , and enter “collection financial standards” into the search box.  The search will direct consumers to pages offering guidelines of what they can reasonably expect to pay for food, clothing, housekeeping supplies, out-of-pocket health care, utilities and transportation.

  To read the full story, please click here:

            http://http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/realestate/21mort.html?_r=3&ref=realestate_r=1&ref=realestate

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

 

7.5 million homeowners “underwater”

· According to some estimates as many as 12 million borrowers may have negative equity in their home, meaning that they owe more on their mortgage loans than their homes are currently worth. However, according to statistics gathered by C.A.R. over the last 40 years, homeowners who purchase a house and keep it for at least five years have an average annual rate of return of nearly 12 percent.

· Although California’s inventory of homes with high negative equity is higher compared with other states, lower home prices have increased affordability, making it easier for first-time home buyers to enter the market and others buyers to move up to larger houses or more desirable neighborhoods.

· Borrowers who are facing foreclosure should work with their lender and apply for a loan modification program. Many financial institutions are offering homeowners the opportunity to rewrite an adjustable-rate mortgage into one that is fixed for 30 years. Some banks also are offering existing customers zero interest for a short period of time and lowering the principle balance on the loan to make payments more affordable.

 

 

 Related articles:

Don’t quaify for a Modification Program?

 What is a loan Modification?

 

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

  

Countrywide Bank Loan Modification for Troubled Home Owners

Bank of America, which acquired Countrywide in July, said that nearly 400,000 troubled homeowners who have subprime mortgages and option adjustable-rate loans through Countrywide may be eligible for loan modifications. To be eligible for the Bank of America plan, homeowners must occupy the home as their primary residence; the mortgage must be seriously delinquent — or likely to become so; and the loan must have been serviced by Countrywide and originated prior to Dec. 31, 2007. Bank of America will help borrowers by restructuring first-year payments of principal, interest, taxes and insurance to no more than 34 percent of the borrower’s income; halting foreclosure sales against borrowers who are likely to qualify for a loan modification; and waiving restructuring fees and prepayment penalties.

To read the full story, please click here:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2008-10-06-countrywide-mortgages-settlement_N.htm

 

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.

What if you don’t qualify for a Mortgage Modification Program?

The majority of the mortgage modification programs from the larger lenders only are available to homeowners who either already are in default or are at risk of defaulting on their primary residences. However, some homeowners, in particular those who may default on a vacation home or an investment property, have some options available.

· Homeowners who are in default or at-risk of defaulting should contact a reputable credit counseling agency to discuss possible options other than foreclosure. When calling a credit counseling agency, the homeowner should have their loan number, most recent mortgage statement, bank statements and a letter demonstrating financial hardship. To find a credit counselor, visit the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Web site at: http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcs.cfm?webListAction=search&searchstate=CA or the non-profit organization National Foundation for Credit Counseling at http://www.nfcc.org/.

· Homeowners should contact their loan servicer as soon as possible to try to work out potential solutions. According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), some borrowers who do not meet the requirements for an existing mortgage modification program may still be considered for a loan adjustment based on personal circumstances.

· If a mortgage modification is not possible, homeowners may want to consider a short sale — sell the home for less than the amount of the mortgage. Although a short sale enables a homeowner to avoid foreclosure and often causes less damage to the homeowner’s credit score than a foreclosure, the lender must agree to accept the loss and in some cases the homeowner may have to pay taxes on the difference. Also, many lenders are overwhelmed by the large number of short sales being submitted by homeowners, so it could take longer than usual to receive a short-sale acceptance from the lender.

· If a homeowner cannot qualify for a mortgage modification or a short sale, some lenders will consider a deed in lieu of foreclosure, where the homeowner transfers the title to the lender in exchange for debt forgiveness. Properties that have additional debt, such as home equity lines of credit or additional mortgages, may not qualify for a deed in lieu of foreclosure. Homeowners who have additional debt tied to the property must share this information with their lender for consideration when applying for a short sale.

For any questions or help with any Real Estate situation, you can call on the Home Team Girls.

The Home Team Girls Realtors® Real Estate Team helping you with Homes For Sale, Seller Strategies, Certified Buyer’s Agent, Bank Foreclosure Specialist, Short Sale Specialist. We use the service of a certified  Home Stager on all of our listings. For Roseville and Sacramento Realtor Services call on the Home Team Girls.