Help for Home Loans!!

DO NOT pay for help with your mortgage! Be extremely wary of anyone who asks for money to act on your behalf, or wants you to sign away your rights. There are HUD approved counselors available to give you guidance and work with you and your lender- and they will not charge you for this service.

The Obama administration set aside $75 billion to help homeowners in distress. This is the first effort made with the T.A.R.P. money that Main Street America can actually see. The government’s new foreclosure prevention plan is called Making Home Affordable. (M.H.A)

The government has set up a website specifically to give people who are struggling with their mortgage a place to get answers and help. These citizens may be struggling due to an interest rate hike or loss of income. Added to the problem is the nose-dive taken by the housing market after the real estate bubble burst, leaving so many people “underwater” in their current mortgages. The program is designed to help all homeowners, regardless of who their loan servicer is, with the goal being to refinance or modify loans so that they are currently affordable for the owners.

How do you know if you’re eligible for help? Here is a quick checklist:

The eligibility criteria for the Home Affordable Modification Program are:

• Be an owner-occupant in a one to four unit property,
• Have an unpaid principal balance that is equal to or less than $729,750 for one unit properties (there is a higher limit for two to four unit properties),
• Have a loan that was originated on or before January 1, 2009,
• Have a mortgage payment (including taxes, insurance, and home owners association dues) that is more than 31% of your gross (pre-tax) monthly income, and
• Have a mortgage payment that is not affordable, perhaps because of a significant change in income or expenses.

If it appears that you meet these criteria, go immediately to the government’s new site at

http://makinghomeaffordable.gov and get started getting straightened out.