Many people are facing foreclosure today. If you are one of them, you may be able to delay the process or halt it all together without stepping a foot into court. As part of the “Making Homes Affordable” program, a.k.a Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), mortgage servicers are required to review the eligibility of any homeowner who asks to be considered for the HAMP program. The mortgage servicer cannot go through the foreclosure procedure without this review.
Participating in HAMP is voluntary, but most major servicers have signed agreements to participate. This includes all loans sold to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, along with all major financial institutions receiving assistance under the Financial Stability Program. If you want to find out if you are eligible for this program before talking to your lender, there is an online qualification tool you can use as a first step. If you qualify via the tool, the webiste will give you more information about how to apply for the program.
Per the Making Homes Affordable website, “many lenders have made a commitment to delay foreclosure on all loans that meet the minimum eligibility criteria for a home affordable modification”. What this means to you: if you have been notified that your bank is starting legal foreclosure procedures, you can halt foreclosure by applying for the HAMP program.
How you can do this:
- Find out if your lender is participating in HAMP.
- Pre-qualify yourself via the online qualification tool. Note: qualification here does not mean you will be officially accepted into the program.
- Apply for the HAMP program.
- Your mortgage lender/servicer will make a modification offer, or will reject your application.
If you are rejected:
- Double check to see that the HAMP criteria was followed correctly. If servicer makes modification offer and it fails to meet HAMP guidelines, servicer has not complied and foreclosure cannot proceed.
- Ask if they will provide you will the documentation used to reject your application.
If you qualify:
- If you are eligible, foreclosure has to be dismissed and loan modification procedures need to take place under HAMP bill.
- If you refuse the offer made to you by the loan servicer through the HAMP program, your foreclosure can proceed.
Is the number of foreclosures going on in this country skyrocketing? Sure is. However, so is the backlog. Even if you are very delinquent on your payments you may never need the advice in this column. The Wall Street Journal reported on Sept 23 that “There were 217,000 loans in July where the borrower hadn’t made a payment in at least a year but the lender hadn’t begun the foreclosure process. In other words, 17% of home mortgages that are at least 12 months overdue aren’t in foreclosure, up from 8% a year earlier.”
How many of you out there are actively being taken to court related to foreclosure proceedings? Have you applied for a loan modification program? How did it go? Tell us about it by leaving a comment!
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I was just today notified I was denied HAMP due to excessive loan modification forbearance. Since Jan. 2009 I have been in contact with my mortgage banker and I have jumped through all the hoops to qualify. I have followed all criteria required of me now they tell me I’m sorry you don’t qualify now cough up $10,032.25 by Nov 12 2009 or we begin foreclosure. I am 63 yrs old due to medical issues and layoffs I became unemployed I am currently looking for work. I can meet the mortgage if my loan was modified. I would have done better if I had just gave the house back to the bank. This HAMP is a joke and is not meant to help anyone.
Tanya IF THAT ISN’t ILLEGAL IT OUGHT TO BE MADE ILLEGAL!
It is outrageous that people who MOST need help and NOT getting HELP!
Please post again, you’re in my prayers. You are right that it was NO HELP.
We were in the HAMP trial period, my husband lost his job after we sent the 1st payment in ahead of schedule. Needless to say he was out of work, & he scrambled for a month to find a job, and upon getting one (that is less than half of his income) we still somehow submitted the payments which were $1,983.00 (which with our new income,are too high anyways) & It counts for nothing, we are denied. Now what? $1,000 to a faulty Mod Company, $3,900 to a lawyer, all for what?
i live in FLORIDA and am in the hamp program trial period i have made 2 out of three payments.i was going to do a deed in lieu but was told about the HAMP program so i decided to try it i was preapproved to participate and was told my foreclosure would be delayed during the trial period now i find out that my lender is going for final judgement of foreclosure on my home when i was told 2 months ago this would not happen to me they had never stopped the forclosure process.every web site i go to tells me my lender (NATIONSTAR OUT OF TEXAS) can not do this this is not fair i am making my payments like i am suppose to what next ?
albert, final with the court, your county clerk office that you were given a hamp modification, submit all copies along with copies of your payment. they should have stop the foreclosure proceedings if you ae making payments