News
In the first three parts of this series, I described the recent legal precedence for current mortgage modifications. I defined the difference between a mortgage modification and a refinance. The practical, real world implications of the difficulties in negotiating a mortgage modification and three no-nonsense implications in getting a modification were spelled out. I justified the fees in getting an attorney-negotiated mortgage modification, and how to justify the choice between paying your next mortgage payment and paying an attorney.
FICO credit scores will suffer because of late payments, not because of any mortgage modification per se. If new - reasonable - negotiated payments are made successfully for a year, the credit score will recover. The ultimate goal here is new, permanent, affordable payments. (Additionally, the federal government will pay $1,000 to the loan principal for each of the first five years of on-time payments under the HAMP program.)
A little-known fact is that investment property mortgages can be modified providing that the primary, residential mortgage is in good standing. The implication here is that a multiple property owner should have his primary mortgage and total income evaluated; and then proceed through their investment portfolio to evaluate those mortgages also.
Another little-known fact is that second mortgages can be modified as well. They don't fit in the HAMP program, but if you're going to modify the first lien, you might as well negotiate the second as well. Again, the ultimate goal is 31 percent of net income to a negotiated mortgage modification to make the monthly payments affordable.
Like many reporters, observers, and homeowners, I personally spent a long time lamenting how unfair it was that a distressed property owner had to pay for a mortgage modification; especially when they would assuredly be strapped for the monthly payment anyway. The real-world conclusion is that this is like barking at the moon. It might make one feel better, but changes nothing. This is the real world. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for the homeowner who wants to survive this mortgage crisis.
The distressed homeowner has to ask themselves, Who comes first here? If you want to keep your home, (or salvage your good name for any future real estate ownership in a short sale,) you need to find a way to the front of the line. An application file submitted by the best U.S. attorney in the business is underwritten, and modified, first. The attorneys I represent have the same federal rule book and federal calculator; and the direct phone number of the head underwriter. They do take our calls. Equally so for a short sale.
I remember waiting my turn in the lunch line in school. We all do. That was when we all had faith we were going to get fed in due course and the line was fair. Today, if you wait your turn, you'll likely starve. The homeowner that gets to the front of the line wins, typically in less than 60 days. This applies both to mortgage modification or short sale negotiations. (Just imagine buying your way to the front of the school lunch line!)
Chris Dix writes and publishes his blog on Mortgage Modifications at www.Mortgage-Mod-Monster.com. He also publishes www.Mortgage-Monster.com/grand-junction, a website that covers economic and employment as well as mortgage opportunities on Colorado's Western Slope. Locally, he can be reached at 242-2600.
FICO credit scores will suffer because of late payments, not because of any mortgage modification per se. If new - reasonable - negotiated payments are made successfully for a year, the credit score will recover. The ultimate goal here is new, permanent, affordable payments. (Additionally, the federal government will pay $1,000 to the loan principal for each of the first five years of on-time payments under the HAMP program.)
A little-known fact is that investment property mortgages can be modified providing that the primary, residential mortgage is in good standing. The implication here is that a multiple property owner should have his primary mortgage and total income evaluated; and then proceed through their investment portfolio to evaluate those mortgages also.
Another little-known fact is that second mortgages can be modified as well. They don't fit in the HAMP program, but if you're going to modify the first lien, you might as well negotiate the second as well. Again, the ultimate goal is 31 percent of net income to a negotiated mortgage modification to make the monthly payments affordable.
Like many reporters, observers, and homeowners, I personally spent a long time lamenting how unfair it was that a distressed property owner had to pay for a mortgage modification; especially when they would assuredly be strapped for the monthly payment anyway. The real-world conclusion is that this is like barking at the moon. It might make one feel better, but changes nothing. This is the real world. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for the homeowner who wants to survive this mortgage crisis.
The distressed homeowner has to ask themselves, Who comes first here? If you want to keep your home, (or salvage your good name for any future real estate ownership in a short sale,) you need to find a way to the front of the line. An application file submitted by the best U.S. attorney in the business is underwritten, and modified, first. The attorneys I represent have the same federal rule book and federal calculator; and the direct phone number of the head underwriter. They do take our calls. Equally so for a short sale.
I remember waiting my turn in the lunch line in school. We all do. That was when we all had faith we were going to get fed in due course and the line was fair. Today, if you wait your turn, you'll likely starve. The homeowner that gets to the front of the line wins, typically in less than 60 days. This applies both to mortgage modification or short sale negotiations. (Just imagine buying your way to the front of the school lunch line!)
Chris Dix writes and publishes his blog on Mortgage Modifications at www.Mortgage-Mod-Monster.com. He also publishes www.Mortgage-Monster.com/grand-junction, a website that covers economic and employment as well as mortgage opportunities on Colorado's Western Slope. Locally, he can be reached at 242-2600.
