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Are you having trouble keeping up with
your mortgage payments? Have you
received a notice from your lender
asking you to contact them?
If you are unable
to make your mortgage payment:
1. Don't ignore the problem.
The further behind you become, the
harder it will be to reinstate your loan
and the more likely that you will lose
your house.
2. Contact your lender as soon
as you realize that you have a problem.
Lenders do not want your house. They
have options to help borrowers through
difficult financial times.
3. Open and respond to all mail
from your lender.
The first notices you receive will offer
good information about foreclosure
prevention options that can help you
weather financial problems. Later mail
may include important notice of pending
legal action. Your failure to open the
mail will not be an excuse in
foreclosure court.
4. Know your mortgage rights.
Find your loan documents and read them
so you know what your lender may do if
you can't make your payments.
5. Understand foreclosure
prevention options.
Valuable information about foreclosure
prevention (also called loss mitigation)
options can be found on the internet at
www.fha.gov/foreclosure/index.cfm.
6. Contact a housing counselor.
Housing counselors can help you
understand the law and your options,
organize your finances and represent you
in negotiations with your lender if you
need this assistance. Contact a
housing counseling
agency
near you.
7.
Prioritize your spending.
After healthcare, keeping your house
should be your first priority. Review
your finances and see where you can cut
spending in order to make your mortgage
payment. Look for optional
expenses-cable TV, memberships,
entertainment-that you can eliminate.
Delay payments on credit cards and other
"unsecured" debt until you have paid
your mortgage.
8. Use your assets.
Do you have assets-a second car,
jewelry, a whole life insurance
policy-that you can sell for cash to
help reinstate your loan? Can anyone in
your household get an extra job to bring
in additional income? Even if these
efforts don't significantly increase
your available cash or your income, they
demonstrate to your lender that you are
willing to make sacrifices to keep your
home.
9. Avoid foreclosure prevention
companies.
You don't need to pay fees for
foreclosure prevention help-use that
money to pay the mortgage instead. Many
for-profit companies will contact you
promising to negotiate with your lender.
While these may be legitimate
businesses, they will charge you a hefty
fee (often two or three month's mortgage
payment) for information and services
your lender or a
housing
counseling agency
will provide free if you contact them.
10.
Don't lose your house to
foreclosure
recovery scams!
If any firm claims they can stop your
foreclosure immediately if you sign a
document appointing them to act on your
behalf, you may well be signing over the
title to your property and becoming a
renter in your own home! Never sign a
legal document without reading and
understanding all the terms and getting
professional advice from an attorney, a
trusted real estate professional, or a
housing counseling
agency.
For more information about foreclosure
recovery scams,
click here.
Source:
http://www.hud.gov/foreclosure/index.cfm
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