By Moe Bedard
Last Friday, Bank of America formally announced its inclusion in to President Obama’s Loan Modification Incentive program. The program allocates 75 billion in aid to lenders and services to not only provide loan modifications under federal standards, but also agrees to subsidize payment reductions to 31% of a borrowers monthly income.
From CNN Money:
Mortgage servicers must bring borrowers’ monthly payments down to at least 38% of their income by dropping rates, stretching out loan terms or reducing principal. Lenders, if they sign onto the program, can’t cherry-pick loans; they must consider any troubled loan to see if it meets the program guidelines.
While the program maintains an anti cherry picking clause, my concern is that now that mortgage giants like Bank of America have bought in to the program that borrowers that fall outside of the government standards may not be considered for a loan modification.
There seems to be a healthy and positive buzz in the mainstream media regarding the acceptance and implementation of this program by major institutions but, as always, I’m a “wait and see” type of guy. I’ll be following developments and outcomes of the federal programs with a keen eye on the people that aren’t being helped.
In short order I think the American public will be able to ascertain for themselves whether or not throwing billions more dollars at the banks to provide loan modifications is a good thing, a bad thing or, simply, just another waste of our tax payer dollars.
“my concern is that now that mortgage giants like Bank of America have bought in to the program that borrowers that fall outside of the government standards may not be considered for a loan modification”
I agree completely. The guidelines are very stringent. I hope BoA doesn’t use this supposed ‘adherence’ to railroad people simply because they earn two dollars higher than the guideline calls for. My biggest concern is that consumers become educated BEFORE contacting their banks so that they do no become victims of this supposed ‘incentive’.
How do we know what to do to get this help? Or is it to our benefit, I dont want to loose my house but I still feel that way .
How do we get the help? Does this apply to BofA Portfolio loans and not just FNMA, etc…? Where can I get more information?
Thanks for your help!
BoA purchased Countrywide Mortage last year. Neither company is doing NOTHING to help distressed homeowners. BoA may have signed a home modification agreement with the government but the agreement is useless it they are not communicating this information to their customers. I’ve been trying since November 2008 to contact Countrywide regarding a home modification loan. I’ve sent certified letters and no one has returned my calls or responded to my certified letters. My only hope is one day Countrywide will face a class action lawsuit because of what they’ve done to homeowners and falsifying government agreements.
I agree with all of the above comments, I’ve tried with Country Wide since March, 2008, gone through HOPE which in turn they increase my mortgage payment to $200 more a month, how is this helping me, this is an insult, not only do you have to wait 2 months for a response, but when it finalizes and you see the outcome is so frustrating. So i hope that BoA is participating with the Federal loan, this way more homeowners can benefit instead of being only offered to freddie & fannie, i am sure that by BoA deciding to participate other banks will follow. By banks foreclosing and not allowing homeowners the opportunity to continue in their homes, retructuring their payments is what everyone calls the “White Collar Crime Scene”, communities around the world are starting to fight back by protesting through the media, radio, in front of the same banks that are refusing to provide relief. Everyone must come together and voice this abuse, there are several activist getting everyone together and fight, we should not abandom ship, we are 9 million homeowners falling into foreclosure, if we all protest, WHO CAN WIN AGAINST US, WE MUST UNITE FOR ONE COMMON CAUSE, THE RIGHT FOR EQUALITY!! the sames rights given to lenders like freddie & fannie, the same rights to have a reduced interest rate, we are the victims of predatory lending, we were the ones sold subprime mortgages, blown up home values that are worth not even half of what we paid for. Obama is suggesting bankruptcy and the bill has not been approved, claiming not everyone is in default and that their homes value will decrease, let me explain common logic to this comment, i bought my home back in 2004 at $300,000, in my area there are more than 50 homes in foreclosure selling at auction for $60,000, so if the senate & house feels this way will increase home value they are definitely dilutional, by providing bankruptcy assistance to homes, owners stay in their homes and these homes are not sold to greedy investors and home value stabilizes.
Countrywide had me fax them endless documentation, notarized letter of hardship, paycheck stubs, 2 years of tax returns. When I called to ask the status of my loan modification I was told that I wouldn’t even be considered until I DEFAULT on the loan. My job is about to be eliminated from the company and I am a single woman who owns my home. So, there is no trying to work things about BEFORE THE TRAIN WRECK.. only after. I don’t get it?
I am very frustrated with Countrywide. I have been speaking with them on an ongoing basis and just recieved a Notice of Sale only 1 day after the 90 day NOD. Gee, my house is below water, 3 other houses on my block are doing Short Sales and Countrywide wants my house after deciding they can not give this Single Mother of three who is starting a new career after a layoff TIME??? I did explain that I am working with a HOPENOW HUD approved agency and still Countrywide demanded the financial information. She said I did not qualify for any of Countrywides current plans.
I really hope that the Obama plan is regulated if B of A/Countrywide receive more bailout money from us the taxpayers. We need accountability from the Banks.
If eveyone stops paying they will have to fix it. There problem solved! No money coming in/ No banks. Credit? Yeah that whole bureau will have to be restuctured as well. Power To The People!!
So, I just spent the last four hours trying to contact BofA. I was laid off in March, am on unemployment, have been paying my bills out of shrinking savings, and decided to at least check to see if there is any relief available.
Now I see these stories and wonder what is going on.
I wonder. Could it be that the large banks are intentionally withholding help to ensure that those of us with any savings completely exhaust that resource, indicated by the failure to make more payments, threat of foreclosure etc. In short, it feels like they want to squeeze every possible penny out of the economy prior to helping anyone. God, I hope this is just paranoia. But the run around I just went through felt calculated, like a total Catch 22 in the original and sinister sense. I hope I am wrong.
By the way, the first customer support person I spoke with nearly brought tears to my eyes with her compassionate assurance that BofA was there to help. After that, it was all down hill.
After months of waiting, I submitted the requested docs for a loan workout in late February, I still have to hear from a “workout” officer reviewing my loan. At this point we’re three months behind always trying to stay within those three months but was advised by one of their “debt collectors” to have a plan B because my payments would most likely go up as in 99% of the loan mods. But not to worry he assured me we have plenty of equity in the property so they wouldn’t go after me in court for the 2nd loan valued a close to 14,000. Don’t worry he said. “It’ll be a straight foreclosure.” Whatever thats suppose to mean.
All we can do s pray for a Hail Mary with the Obama Stimulus Plan but were not holding our breath.
Well, BOA just REFUSED to cut the rate on my NINE PERCENT, INTEREST ONLY LOAN. I have already begun to fight back, writing Obama and my Congresspeople and telling them about it, and other things too. THIS IS NOT OVER, BOA!! BANK ON IT!
Banks are listening, but depend on investors approval, which they are not approving the modifications. Our only alternative is to write to congress, Obama, Pelosi, the CEO of BOA, CNN, ABC, 20/20..get the media involved, if we remain silent, our efforts will go no where.
I’ve sent several emails to government, if any respond, i will post and share with all of you. My GOAL IS…I WILL FIGHT TILL THE VERY END!! DEFEAT IS NOT AN OPTION.
Last Friday, Bank of America formally announced its inclusion in to President Obama’s Loan Modification Incentive program. The program allocates 75 billion in aid to lenders and services to not only provide loan modifications under federal standards, but also agrees to subsidize payment reductions to 31% of a borrowers monthly income. Start submitting your applications to BoA.
I will not count on BoA. I just inquire on the gov’t programs that they have and I was told that I qualified. However, I do have to come up with the closing cost of $8,588.oo to process the loan. Where can I get that kind of money when my property is under water. After all I’m applying to get relief, this is just an insult to injury nothing more. This is a joke.
I called to get some kind of releif and the answer i got was ” you dont qualify BECAUSE your husbands not working” UMM isnt that the point. He went from being on disability for 6 months to no job!! Come on help us, we’re all hard working americans WE WANT OUR HOMES!!!
Good luck everyone.
I went through the loan modification process with countrywide and received a letter of approval dated 3-7-09, I called to see if there was anything else I needed to do and was told no. They said that it will take a couple months for all paperwork to go through and payments to be applied. In the approval it stated my new payment amount and that my next payment was due 5-1-09. They said not to call about his because it will only delay the process.
I checked my loan on the computer a couple of weeks ago to find out that my house is now about to be foreclosed on and that they had denied the modification 23 days after the approval. ??????????????
I went through months of sending them everything they asked for. I was only 2 months behind on my payments at that time, staying within the 3 month foreclosure time and now they have totally screwed me. I called and now that Bank of America has taken over I can’t even get anyone to talk to me. They told me my only option was a short sale. I don’t know what I’m going to do now. I have a handicapped son and I have modified my home to accomodate him.
This world is so screwed. GOOD LUCK!!!!!
Well it seems Copuntrywide is just screwing everyone! I was approved for a modification last Dec. Sent all the docs back, etc, started making the new pmt in Jan 2009 (according to the mod). Looked things up on line – showed me way behind. Called them and they said they did’nt get the docs back, then they said they got them late, then they said the Notary did’nt notorize it right (dah…she works for a Title company). Then they said it did’nt go through cause that program was no longer available!
They said I could reapply. Okay – then today I was told it was cancelled (by who???). Apparently, now I don’t qualify!
If I don’t “cure” the default my home will be foreclosed on June 10th.
I have been making the modification payments since Jan, but they say I am now $13,000 behind (based on the original loan).
They told me to try and get a loan to take care of it. Yea right! My credit is now so screwed thanks to them. They had told me last Oct to get the modicication, I needed to not make my payments until they notified me of the modification. I did everything they told me to do!
I think we need to file a class action lawsuit against Countywide or BofA, since they have lied to so many people and screwed us all – maybe right out of our homes.
Any suggestions??? I need some help!
Everyone needs to understand one very important thing; there are two different modification programs at Bank of America.
The first is the one everyone is talking about, the Obama Making Home Affordable Modification program, but in order to qualify for that modification you must have a loan owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. If you do you’re in luck, because the guidelines are cut and dry. Bank of America will decrease your interest rate, then increase term, then reduce principle, in that order until your payments are 31% of your income. They are required by the program to try to help.
The second is for all loans owned by anyone other than Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. This is where things go bad. If you have one of these loans you will have to perform a delicate dance with Bank of America to demonstrate that you have a hardship, but not one that is so bad that you are a lost cause. When they ask you for your income and expenses there can’t be a big deficit, in fact no deficit is best. If you can’t lower your expenses for them, then you will have to raise your income. Convince friends and family to sign letters verifying that they are going to support you during your “hardship.” You better create some documentation also to prove it. You better be able to tell a story that says, I need help, and reasonable adjustments to my mortgage can easily close the gap.
I hope my experience helps.
Thanks JON,
BUT IF MY LOAN WAS THROUGH FREDDIE OR FANNIE I DO NOT NEED BANK OF AMERICA, THAT’S WHAT I WAS TOLD BY HUD. BANK OF AMERICA BOUGHT COUNTRYWIDE WHO WAS FOUND GUILITY OF PREDATORY LENDING BY THE COURT.
BANK OF AMERICA RECEIVED BAILOUT $$$ AND announced its inclusion in to President Obama’s Loan Modification Incentive program. The program allocates 75 billion in aid to lenders and services to not only provide loan modifications under federal standards, but also agrees to subsidize payment reductions to 31% of a borrowers monthly income, THIS SAYS IT ALL, BANK OF AMERICA CAN HAVE ONE OR THE OTHER, IF THEY ARE WITH OBAMAS PLAN IS MODIFYING LOANS IN PAYMENT REDUCTION TO A 31%, WE ALL NEED TO WRITE TO CONGRESS, TO THE PRESIDENT TO EVERYONE IN THE MEDIA, BANKS ARE INTENTIONALLY PROVIDING FALSE CRITERIAS TO THEN FORECLOSE ON PURPOSE. I HAVE WRITTEN TO THE GOVERNOR, TO THE WHITE HOUSE AND DETERMINED TO CONTINUE WRITING UNTIL I GET SOMEONE’S ATTENTION, BUT I CANNOT DO IT ALONE, EVERYONE MUST ALSO WRITE, VOICE YOUR INJUSTICE, IF YOU DON’T, BANKS WILL CONTINUE TO GET AWAY WITH THIS CRIME.
My wife and I received a modification through CountryWide in June 2008. To get the modification we had to pay $5200.00. I withdrew my retirement money and paid them. Countrywide said they would put the remaining balance on the rears of my mortgage and dropped my rate from 13% to 6%. Now I get a notice in the mail that says Im pending forclosure because of the balance Countrywide was supposed to put of the rear of my mortgage. To get out of this I have to pay another $6800.00 which I do not have. Can anyone say SCREWED.
Fellow Americans. I am about to give you the best of advise. Read RESPA Section 6. The Real Estate and Procedures Act. This outlines the responsibilities of a lender to prove their debt against you. In order for any bank to foreclose on your property, they have to present the Debt Instrument, known as your original loan documents. Ask for these documents, it is your right, and by law, the lenders have to provide them for you, if they don’t have them, they have to modify. This buys you time, and also gives you the opportunity to read your documents for violations. You can hire an attorney to do this, or a loan modification company, believe it or not, there are some reputable ones, or you can do it your self and save money. Sometimes, they can’t find the original loans, considering how many times the loans were sold back and forth, and how overwhelmed the banks are. Or, just call me, I’d love to help.
Bank of America refused to do a modification for us. Instead they insist that we come up with half of our arrearages up front before they will help us.
I went through the same thing everyone went through. I ended up going to a third party and had them do a loan mod for me. it took just as long but now I have a great 30 years fix. I tell everyone I meet about them.
These stories are truly heartbreaking. It is obvious that many of us share the frustrations of the unethical practices of Countrywide home loans and now BOA. I myself have been going through hell with them regarding a “modified loan” they offered me back in sept 2008…all paperwork was signed, notarized and sent and i have been making my “new payments faithfully. However every month my statement shows an increase on my payments with no update on the modification. I call them every month and explain my situation where in turn they apologize for the delays and continue to make excuses and promises to update the loan. Well, to my surprise today…after spending over an hour on the phone i spoke to a cold heartless manager who “reviewed my modification forms and stated to me that the reason nothing had been updated was because of some type of technical error when papers where notarized. Can you believe that pile of crap…i almost started crying! I am completely beside myself and without clear answers on what to do next. Now this offer is no longer valid and they said all i can do is re-apply but i have to pay over $4,000. to bring my account up to date first. I can’t afford this and don’t think i’ll be able to afford continuing to pay my mortgage any longer. If anyone can recommend a third party to try and apply for another modification i would appreciate it. In the meantime…i agree with Sharon’s comment about what we all need to do regardless of outcome is to file a CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT against Countrywide…we need a good lawyer! Thanks!
I aagree with Janet all I wanted to do was get my loan estended to a 30 year fixed without any money out and they messed around. I went to them before i knew i wasn’t going to be able to make payments ahead of time and they never answered or contacted me or did any of the paper work until I went to the office down in Bloomington. They said try a modification which is what I thought it was in the first place. I think we should meet sometime this weekend and perhaps talk to channel 5 or fox to try to really push thesse people. I have never been over 30 days late on a pyment and because they told me we would close in a eek thought i would be closing now i have to double make doouble payment which I don’t have before they will talk to me about anything again.
Jennifer: what “third party” did you use?
Jennifer June 5, 2009 at 10:39 am
I went through the same thing everyone went through. I ended up going to a third party and had them do a loan mod for me. it took just as long but now I have a great 30 years fix. I tell everyone I meet about them.
Thanks,
Sandra
To all: We all share similar stories. Unfortunately, unless you are willing to pay lawyers upfront and with this i say there is no guarantee….there is no happy ending. These lawyers are all about money, of course…one free consultation a scripted one i may say, but when you go into details they will tell you, well if you need my services i charge $$$$.
Banks & modifications – I requested a modification to have my mortgage payment reduced, by this having my interest rate of 10.75% down to a 6%. BOA said i did not qualify, so i called their customer service department and asked how did they come to that conclusion. To me is easy math, if i currently pay $2,100 a month, and by reducing my interest rate i would probably be in the range of $1,500, then i will be considered a low risk and be less likely to default, i did everything requested to do, i submitted hardship, pay stubs, bank statements, financial budget, even a current appraisal from my property which value dropped 20%, so if you think about it, even with a mortgage of 1,500 per month for 30 years, i am still paying more than what the house is worth. My question then is…what are there criterias?
Sharon,, you and I could be paying for the same home. That is exactly what they did to me also. I am now on my third try at this. They gave me a mod. for the third time, but it raised my payments 48.00 a month. Same story,,,we didnt receive doc’s,,,,we lost your paper work. etc,,,etc. Don’t make any payment’s untill the date we say on your mod. loan. Now my payment isn’t due until Nov.1 2009.
I will be about 7,000 dollars in default. I am really scared. This has been going on since they called me in Jan 2009. I even sent a payment on my first mod for april. Then I was told, they didnt receive doc. And I needed to send in the rest of the money for a full payment. They wont accept partial payments. Yet they cashed the certified check, Crazy. I am so frustrated I am just about ready to walk away from the house. But my credit is so bad now I may never own another home.
BOA isn’t even a true american co. They are muti-national, so why are they getting fed money anyway.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2402244/are_lenders_cherry_picking_loan_modifications.html?cat=3
Hello friends..
Same story here…. After dancing witht Countrywide for a year or more with constant paperwork being sent, lost. etc…… In Sept 2009 they sent me a resonable loan mod set of paperwork which I signed, had notarized at a BOA! and sent back to them in time.. I also got on the phone and asked where to send the new payment, since Countrywide had been bought by BOA and there seemed to be some confusion. I was told to wait until BOA acknowledged receipt of the completed loan doc papers, and I would get a new statement that would show the address to send the payment to.. Nothing comes in the mail, and after 60 days I start calling..Well to make a long story short they have said they can’t find the loan docs I sent in, now they did find them.. and they don’t really know what to do… So what do they do? They foreclose with a sale date in May 2010…. On the phone they now keep saying they are going to fix this, since its their mistake, and that they will put me into a program well in time before the sale date…They also by the way now won’t even take a phone call… They are taking messages and “calling back within 24 hours” HA… no call backs EVER… Oh and I am in the “Fast Track Que” ! sounds impressive doesn’t it…. This apparantly is a moniker for round file, because once you get in the “Fast Track Que” you get no response of any kind…. Well I am going to keep calling these morons down to the last minute, and then I am going to stay in my house no matter what… Screw them… If there is any justice these people will get sued and lose….
I’m shocked to see my story here too. My husband lost his job 2 years ago and we fell behind on our mortgage. We immediately applied for loan modification with Countrywide. Thought we had one for several months, but then were told the paperwork wasn’t turned in properly. Had to re-apply. Then sold to Bank of America and re-apply again. We can make our payments now, but they won’t work with us on arrears. We have sent everything they ask for over and over again. It’s so frustrating. Do they help anyone?