When Does Obama’s “Home Affordable” Refinance Program Really Start, and How Will It Work?

Theresa,
It is important to know how to send a file to the bank, what to send and whom to send it to. The list of items required are as follows:

1. Hardship affidavit – detail what has lead to your hardship, and stpes you have taken to correct your situation
2. Pay stubs or other income sources to cover the most recent month (year to date profit and loss if self employed)
3. 07 and 08 tax returns, sign second page of each year
4. 07 and 08 W2′s
5. Financial statement for household expenses
6. Recent property tax bill
7. Home owners insurance page showing premium amount
8. 4506T TZ
9. Proof of residency, such as utility bills
10. 2 months most recent bank statements, all pages.

Send the package, and follow up each week. Check Fannie and Freddie sites to see if the loan is either GSE. This is helpful so you know what loan type you have and whether the bank is adhering to the HAMP/MHA guidelines.
This is just informational. I know your sister is beyond this and this is why I say escalate the file to management. Insist on this. If the loan is Fannie or Freddie, then call Fannie Mae and ask for the Level 2 support and see if you can file a complaint with them. 800-732-6643. If that doesn’t work, please email me and I will go over the financials with you and see if they need to be corrected.

I couldn’t believe this crap (sh*t!) when I first heard it, but I have to let everyone know. I am currently losing my mind trying to get a loan modification with bank of america, and I am getting nowhere. I think I might lose my home. But I think everyone needs to hear this so PASS THIS ALONG TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW GOING THROUGH THIS! My sister-in-law just got hired by bank of america to go on the internet and go to blogs and forums like this and make up stories (they have set stories) about her great experience with her loan modification process. She doesn’t even own a home! She is also to deter people from hiring a professional by saying that proffesional companies are rip-offs and that they can do this themselves directly with the bank. They gave her a list of over 100 websites to go on, and gave her instructions to use different names and free email addresses. This is absolutely rediculous! I am fighting to save my home and these big banks are playing games with our lives. Oh yeah they are paying my sister-in-law $10.00 an hr. Does anyone know of a good legitimate attorney or loan modification company that I can goto for help? I believe now that it’s the banks speading all of this “don’t hire a professional”, “loan modification companies are scams if they charge”, “we will modify your loans for free”. I was in a trial payment for 7 months made all of my payments on time, received a verbal approval over the phone, then when the paperwork came in the mail it said I was denied then the next day I receive a notice to foreclose. I am 7 months behind from what they tell me (those trial payments weren’t applied to my monthly payment, so what was it applied to?) Now, I have no choice but to start all over again because I don’t want to lose my home! I have never commented on these sites before but now I can’t stay quiet any longer. Everybody needs to know what they are doing. And, they accepted 35 billion in bailout money! A joke! We all need to get together and take all of our money out of the banks for a day or a week. Bring them to their knees. Money is the only thing they seem to understand, so let’s take all of our money out. Bet they will listen then…Or beg for another bailout!

Syliva, I have cut and pasted this from my posting dated Feb. 16th. I hope this helps you save your home. To comment on what you said, I was told that the banks are playing games but I never thought they’d go this far. What day are you trying to get us to take our money out of the banks? I’m with you!

I feel your pain, all of you. I was fortunate enough to find a company that is legitimate. Now I know that the banks the news and government say we shouldn’t go to any company that charges, that the banks will modify your loans for free. Well, how many of us on here have had our loans modified by the banks?

A lot have lost their homes, and lot more still will unless you do what’s necessary to save your homes from the banks. I went through what most of you have, I was there. Then I was referred to Corey Lassiter of Clear Image Financial Group. They saved my home.

I know I would have lost it to Wachovia if it wasn’t for him, Tasha, Denise and the rest of the people who work there. Got me caught up on my mortgage 1st & 2nd, lowered my interested rate & payment, and secured me a 50k principle reduction.

Before anyone else on here loses their homes you need to give them a call 877-940-1477 ext 231. Corey Lassiter. Don’t be afraid of hiring a loan modification company, be afraid of the banks, they are the ones who are taking our homes!

I know they get the job done. News and TV made me afraid to even consider a loan modification company because they are all scams and my lender will do it for free (wrong). There hasn’t been not one story about a good company and when I tried to contact my local news channel they told me that my success story wasn’t news (What!)

So, I am making it my mission to spread the word on this GREAT company!

Kimkham Samnanveth – Call back and ask again. You’ll probably get a different answer. In the meantime continue your payments. Normally you should only have to resubmit updated proof of income, a financial and hardship affidavit. They alreay have the other docs you sent.
I had a file that was at Bank of America for quite some time. Finally got it to MHA and just before approval I was told the file was denied due to occupancy. Of course I faxed in utility bills, made note of the mistake and asked the phone rep to make notations in their system. Thank goodness I didn’t have to resubmit. This particualr homeowners payment went from $4200.77 to $2,782.56.
Just don’t accept the first answer. If they insist on resubmitting, then that’s what you’re stuck with.

Latest from Chase. It will be another 90-120 days they may consider us for their inhouse modification. No need to call they say….Doesn’t sound right to me.

Iam in CRISIS!! I have applied for the Home Affordable Program in October 2009 I supposedly pre qualified over the phone. Submitted everything Bank of America requested. Shortly, after I was fed-exed all documents from B of A still sent in required income docs then went into the 3 month trial payment period and continued to send my payments and signed monthly contracts during this time I filed for Chapter 7 BK and was discharged from my BK in April still making the trial payments even though the 3 months were over per B of A. I was told in April 2010 from the BK Department of B of A that my case was still opened and they are waiting to get the closed letter from the courts?? Today June 3rd 2010 I received my disqualification paperwork from B of A and from my frantic understanding of it they say that my Negative NPV is a reason and the “Investor” will not approve . Is this correct? Can this also be that they are waiting for the “Close” letter from the BK Court? Am I in Foreclosure ? HELP ME PLEASE I CAN NOT LOSE MY HOME I have been here 8 years. I live in Arizona

Thank You

We applied for a loan modification over a year ago, and Bank of America (investor) and SunTrust (loan servicer) have finally told me I need to liquidate my retirement savings.

This was told to me on the phone by “Laquishia” in SunTrust loss mitigation. Laquishia was the rudest, angriest person I have ever talked to. She spoke so fast we couldn’t understand everything. She ignored my request to repeat anything she said. I told her I am 60 and been responsible, saving bit by bit while working hard all my life. This seemed to especially infuriate her. She said most people have nothing, and I should use this money to pay my mortgage, pretty much implying that I should eat cat food like everyone else after they turn me down for a mortgage modification.

First of all, I have no way of knowing if what she said is even true. And I was recently told elsewhere that 401Ks are exempt, but not IRAs. Does anyone know? I could move my IRA into my current job’s 401K, but really don’t want to do this unless this is true.

We are current on our mortgage and our house has a about 15% equity left. We have documented hardships. We stupidly used our 2nd mortgage to pay our first, so now we have too much debt to refinance.

Thanks in advance!

They sure do I gave up on them.and Obama plan is noting but bullshit

I ask for a Modification and what they did was included our tax’s then rise our Mortgage from 2403.98 to 4000.00 and something.We had we are going to walk away from the home.

Yes, the modification process has been difficult with a low success rate for a reason.

So many people are talking to their existing lenders about a modification. HARP is a refinance program. Homeowners are supposed to first apply for a HARP refinance with a LOAN OFFICER, not a loss mitigation agent, then if turned down apply for a modification. Too many people are choosing the wrong path first.

Lillian: The bank will modify to 31% of your gross income. This means your new payment will be 31%, and this includes your taxes and insurance. Sounds to me like you received a system generated modification. Of course I don’t know what your gross income is, but if you have a $5,000 gross per month, as an example, then your new payment will be $1550, although it could be as high as $1900 if they use 38% of the gross income, which they sometimes do.

Unfortunately the Making Homes Affordable Plan left me feeling quite angry & unsatisfied that anything was done to try to help my situation. I was totally current on my mortgage when I was approved for a “trial plan” thru HAMP as I was set to lose my job. During the trial my mortgage was reduced by almost $1000 per month. I was still working & offered to pay the amount in full but was told by over 20 different reps that under the Obama plan, if you pay even one cent more you are disqualified. They told me I should put that extra money toward other debt so if I was denied, which they said 80% of people are, I would at least be in a better position than when I started. Sounded like a win/win right? However after 6 months on the trial plan I received two certified letters in the mail on the same day… the 1st stating that I was not approved & my mortgage would now revert back to its original format and the 2nd stating that as of the 1st of the month my mortgage would show over 90 days delinquent due to the SHORT PAYMENTS and the foreclosure process would start!!! Luckily for me I had been stashing funds into a savings account & was able to pay back the $6000.00 before the 1st avoiding any further actions but I’m sure there are many people who would not be able to do that.

It is my strong opinion that this program only puts innocent & hardworking people in worse predicaments than they originally started in! Please proceed with caution or better yet, steer clear!

The Hamp program has NO teeth, and it was known early on. Litton loans sent my FINAL mod, then UPPED THE PAYMENT BY OVER A HUNDRED DOLLARS AND RISING STILL
They did NOT pay off the BACK TAXES until AFTER, though I sent them the BILLS, and if I did NOT modify they would have PAID THEM when they GOT THEM. They saved the bills to ESCREW me OVER to the tune of 6K more, this is NOT about helping us. The banks got the REAL help and we are all getting a lousy program, we sure wont be in THIS program and jetting about like ROYALTY, thats what we have now the NEW AMERICAN CASTE SYSTEM thanks BUSH, and thanks OBAMA for NOT PUTTING ANY TEETH IN THE “HELP” for homeowners, we want the same sort of HELP the BANKSTERS were given!

KEEP FIGHTING DONT GIVE UP CALL EVERY DAY LIKE I DO AND YOU WONT GET LOST IN THE CHUFFLE, THAT WAY YOU KEEP UP WITH THE NOTES FROM THEM AND IF SOMETHING IS MISSING FAX IT THE SAME DAY I YOU CAN TO DIFFERENT FAX NUMBERS CALL MORTGAGE OUT REACH DEPARTMENT THROUGH CITI, GET THE NUMBER FROM CITI AND YOUR FAXES WILL MAKE IT THROUGH ALL MINE DID FROM DAY ONE LIKE I DO TO MAKE SURE THEY GET IT , CALL 2 DAYS LATER AND IF ITS THERE MAKE SURE THEY NOTE IT IN THE SYSTEM AND E-MAIL YOUR COUNCLOR TO ALERT HER THAT ITS THERE, YOU GOTTA DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO

Yes, that is about right. In order to qualify for modifications of any kind, you have to show the bank that you truly are hard-pressed financially.

I should know. Having been at this since Bush had his own version of ‘help for homeowners,’ (nearly two years), 4 different trial periods (all interest only 5 year plans) a short sale that failed two days before closing, and one last stab at a ‘modification,’ the banks saw that some of the money I was saving by NOT paying 72% of my take home pay to them (the mortgage)….they said I had to eliminate it. But the catch is that if you withdraw anything over $3,000 a month, it triggers post 9-11 homeland security watch/money laundering forms that need to be filled out.
Folks, I ain’t making this stuff up. I’m “joe average,” living in the Pacific Northwest and am waiting for the foreclosure/sheriff sale notice on my door. I’ll leave, and retain the advice of a ‘non neutral, short sale lawyer’ in which I PAY her/him out of my own pocket. NOT the bank if it was a successful short sale.
Welcome to the United Corporation of America. Took me a while to figure it out, but find a darn good lawyer. They are out there; they will defend you if the banks come after for liquid assets you have (Cash, cars, etc).
And yes, keep your mental health and well being in check. You will get past this and life will be better.

You will all love this, I applied for a mortgage modification we have been borrowing from my 491k, insurance policies & family members. When the bank saw my past 3 months statement with the deposits from the above they told me we don’t qualify because we have to much income. I said come on you must be kidding. This modification program is a big joke just like Washington DC!

What it takes to get it …..a story of corporate misdirection

Never have I experienced anything like the process and the communication that my husband and I were subjectyed to at the hands of the Bank of A, when we were applying for a renegotiation of our mortgage: A process out of all bounds in terms of inefficiency and incompetence; an organization that had no interest in helping and did not even bother to pretend to any interest; communication that was either untrustworthy or uninformative. For over a year we were lured along with empty promises, unreliable and conflicting information, fed with recorded messages or by a person in a call center as clueless as we.
The interaction presented a picture of corporate incompetence in the extreme. With one exception: when we fell behind with a monthly payment a whole new order came into play: a program of harrassment started up that left nothing to chance_ phone calls several times a day, registered letters – threatening collection agencies and foreclosure. Regularly, persistently, unrelentingly, month after month the calls continued with a singularity of purpose that would have deserved a better goal. This kept going until we felt besieged and our phone had become an instrument of torture to us. We finally managed to pay off the missed payment and had the relief to see the calls end.
For a brief while. Then they started up again this time with messages of apology –“Please accept our sincere apologies” – sounding as canned and untrustworty as the threats before had sounded real. Whoever designed this communication system must have been a sadist in another life and carried some skills over into this one. No, not true – it must have merely been another consultant, who was hired to take the effort of communication with one’s customer off the shoulders of the BofA and substitute for it an automatic messsaging system believing that any communication will be better than none. Not true. Canned apologies merely add the final touch of insult to the injury already received. In the same way that a murder on stage does not fill one with horror, a pre-recorded apology that fits all occasions does not fill one with gladness.
And as for the injury: We started the process in October 2009. Several times were we told that our paperwork was completed. Several times were we asked to resubmit papers because documents had been lost, were mssing, were lacking, were needed – no apologies , no assumption of blame, no effort to make up for the lost time or the additional effort on our part. Several times were we told that our application was with the underwriters and that we could expect a decision soon. Every time nothing followed.
Today we received yet another postal message –in duplicate – telling us that our application was in and that we could expect to be told soon either
- that it was accepted or
- that it was denied or
- that information was still missing.
This is February 23, 2011, sixteen months after we started the process.
P.s.: Let it be known that when people drop out of such a program it is not to be wondered at.