Home Update

After my post about our sudden and unexpected move from the home we have worked for and lived in for nearly five years now, my pal, Nancy, sent me an email about MakingHomeAffordable.gov. We had not heard of this, so we called late last night, and well after midnight when my husband hung up, we discovered that we had several options - all of which could save us from foreclosure if our mortgage company chooses to work with us. Up till now, they have refused to speak with us, as had the attorney they sent us to.

A couple of things every American homeowner should know:

*Even if you are a day late on your mortgage, your mortgage company can slap you with foreclosure papers. So, if you are a couple of months behind and you have not yet heard from them, do not just hope for the best and think a late payment will cover you. Behind every mortgage company is a group of investors. Your investor may have information on your income and how much money you spend on "non necessary items". If that number is large enough to make your mortgage payable, they may have left you alone for a while, but sooner than you think, they will shut the door on you. Be sure of it. Time to get your money in order and learn how to spend reasonably, because when attorney fees start mounting on you, it will be hard to sell. If you do the calculation at the Making Home Affordable site and you are not eligible, it means that you have been spending money where you really do not need to be spending it, and it is time to streamline. This is your big advantage, your way out of the mess you are in. This may sound harsh or unfair, but trust me, to be within or below your means with no way out is even scarier.

*If you are eligible for this program, various lenders/mortgage companies have different options to help you. You might be able to have your interest rate lowered, have your loan lengthened up to 40 years, sell your house for the market value only, sell it for less than the market value within one month and still have all your debt forgiven, or hand over the deed to your home to the mortgage company. This last option is certainly not the best, but it is much better than a foreclosure and most mortgage companies will give you between $2,000.00 - $5,000.00 in moving expenses for willfully turning over your home when you know you can no longer afford to live there and selling is not feasible.

When we spoke to the woman last night, she went over all our expenses and immediately let us know that we should be easy for our mortgage company to work with, as we live well within our means. She was amazed at how little - if any - that we spend on entertainment and cable, on clothing or gifts for each other. Even our food bill was amazingly low compared to the average American household. She told us we had done the right thing paying off both our cars and cutting our utilities by barely using air conditioning and unplugging all appliances not in use. She said our mortgage company was not allowed to tell us that we could not speak with them, that we can always speak to our mortgage company. She also said that it may be too late for them to work with us, but she sent off some information to their loss prevention department anyway.

Now we wait and see, because our dear friends at Visionstone Properties have offered to let us possibly rent one of their homes, should we need it. When we saw the home, we became instantly excited and it propelled us to proceed with our selling idea no matter what. It's an amazing old home. They have done a phenomenal job at fixing this place up. No, you cannot take it from us. We may be in there very soon.

So, this is where we are now as we scrub and paint and pack and wrap China and try and figure out what we will do with our extra family members - my brother and the dog and cat.

Even the mortgage counselor who helped us last night was amazed that our mortgage company was so unwilling to work with us, as we have a great payment history, an excellent record of paying down nearly all our debt, and we live well within our means. She found it very upsetting, but not at all surprising, that we had worked very hard to improve our credit but the score had not risen with the hard work and effort. She said this happens a lot, especially in this economy.

She was a Christian and noted our consistent tithing, asking our forgiveness, but suggesting that we tithe with our time only. We do not give much, we just give every Sunday, and this is considered our one somewhat unwise note of money mishandling. Lee told her that we were not going to budge on this. Where we receive the Sacraments is where we offer God our thankfulness. She didn't make the suggestion again.

We have no idea where we stand at this moment right now, but we do know that in a couple of days we will find out if our mortgage company will work with us. If they won't, we are in a new old home as soon as possible and someone else will have the privilege of growing their family in our old new one.

I write about this - forsaking my well overdue news assignment to my local paper - because I know that most of my friends who have mortgages are behind by around 2 months. Fix that now, because you are already in the foreclosure danger stage if you are behind even one day. All those late fees will be accumulated and added to an attorney fee that you will be expected to pay along with your late mortgage payments and whatever else is due. Even if you do not qualify for mortgage help at Making Home Affordable, you can certainly speak to one of their credit counselors who are loaded with information and financial knowledge. Even if you rent, you can call them for advice.

By the way, renters, a recent study in a leading business journal suggested that renting in this particular economic turn down is the best way to go. It will save your credit and save you money. Renters, you are wise. Think before you buy even if an eager realtor tells you it is a buyer's market. Oh yeah, and thank you, Miss Nancy for your suggestion.