Are you having trouble keeping up with your mortgage payments? Have you received a notice from your lender asking you to contact them?

* Don’t ignore the letters from your lender
* Contact your lender immediately
* Contact a HUD-approved Housing Counseling Agency
* Toll FREE (800) 569-4287
* TTY (800) 877-8339

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. Learn about the foreclosure laws and timeframes in your state (as every state is different) by contacting the State Government Housing Office.

5. Understand foreclosure prevention options.

Valuable information about foreclosure prevention (also called loss mitigation) options can be found on the internet at portal.hud.gov/portal/page?_pageid=33,717348&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL .

6. Contact a HUD-approved housing counselor.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds free or very low cost housing counseling nationwide. 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. Find a HUD-approved housing counselor near you or call (800) 569-4287 or TTY (800) 877-8339.

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 HUD approved housing counselor 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 HUD approved housing counselor.

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Housing Counseling

Franklin United’s housing counseling services can help you preserve your most important asset, your home. After all, tenants, homeowners and future home purchasers have a lot to lose if their finances get out of control — and a lot to gain from housing counseling delivered by an unbiased housing counselor.

Franklin United counselors don’t work for your mortgage company. They are HUD-approved, knowledgeable and extremely helpful in assisting clients with all kinds of housing counseling services. We help people who are behind on payments, preparing to buy a home, or just starting to consider loans or mortgage products for the first time. We also help people considering borrowing against their home’s equity.

Owning a home, or borrowing against it, doesn’t have to be intimidating. Franklin United’s capable, knowledgeable and compassionate housing counseling services include:

Mortgage Default and Delinquency Housing Counseling

If you are behind on your mortgage payments, our certified housing counselors can help you get back on track. We work with you to establish a budget, set priorities and determine strategies for saving your home.

First-Time Homebuyer Housing Counseling

We can help you prepare for buying your first home. Our certified counselors will educate you on the home buying process, and help you prepare for the requirements and responsibilities of home ownership.

Call 1-800-757-2297 to schedule an appointment today.


Here’s an overview of our housing-related services — available to homeowners and prospective homeowners.
Foreclosure/Loss Mitigation Counseling

A certified housing counselor will meet with you, establish a budget and review and determine the best path to either resolve foreclosure, or mitigate the effects of foreclosure. The Counselor will help you determine the appropriate strategies to help you keep your property and to get back on track. Counseling will also offer you assistance in dealing with your lender, provide you information on avoiding scams that may cause you to lose your home and explain how to avoid predatory lending.
With Foreclosure/Loss Mitigation Counseling, a Certified Housing Counselor will assist you in:

* Reviewing your monthly budget, income and debt, discussing possible methods of budget modification.
* Discussing available options available to you for resolving your delinquent payments.
* Establishing a workable repayment or other plan that will enable you to bring your mortgage current, allowing you to remain in your home.
* Helping you communicate with your mortgage servicer.
* Assisting you with submitting a loss mitigation package to your mortgage servicer.
* Creating a written action plan to help you avoid foreclosure and future financial crises.

HUD Housing Counseling – Frequently Asked Questions
Can I really lose my home?

If you cannot make your payments, your lender has no choice but to foreclose. That’s why it’s important to contact Franklin United before your home enters the foreclosure process. Our counselors can provide you with a comprehensive debt profile and help you design a plan that meets your needs.
Can Franklin United help me with foreclosure problems?

Your home is your most valuable property. If you are past due on your mortgage payments and wondering how you’re going to “catch up”, our certified counselors can help. Our counselors can help you explore all possible ways to save your home in a confidential counseling session. Our counselors will:

1. Help you determine the reason for the default.
2. Review your income vs. your living expenses and debt repayment.
3. Review your consumer debt and make suggestions on how to minimize the payments.
4. Make suggestions on default options.
5. Contact your lender and negotiate on your behalf regarding your defaulted mortgage as appropriate, and with your permission.

We have helped thousands of individuals and families save their homes from foreclosure. Let us help you through this stressful time by providing you with lender-approved options such as:

* Education on the possible consequences of Foreclosure
* Achievable and affordable repayment plans
* Forbearance Agreement
* Modifications/Extension
* Refinance
* Possible Sale of the Property
* Short-Sale
* Pre-Foreclosure Sale
* Partial claim
* Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure

We’re here to help you save your home! In our experience, the sooner you contact us for assistance the better we can help you and improve your chances of success.

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Ask for a Lower Credit Card Interest Rate
A major consumer group conducted a study to find out how easy it is to get a lower credit card interest rate. Fifty-seven percent (57%) of those who simply telephoned their credit card company and asked for a lower interest rate got one instantly. This rate was anywhere from 7 to 10 points lower than their current credit card interest rate.

Getting your credit card interest rate lowered depends on various factors. They are more willing to say “yes” if you meet most or all of the following conditions:

(1) You have a good credit rating — meaning no late pay notations on your credit report and a good credit score;
(2) You do not have a high debt-to-income ratio and you do not carry a big balance on your credit card;
(3) You do not send in just the minimum payment required each month;
(4) You have an excellent payment record with that particular creditor;
(5) The credit card is not one that is categorized as “sub-prime”, meaning it is not a secured credit card or one marketed exclusively to those with bad credit.


If you think you would qualify for a lower credit card interest rate, your next step is to do a bit of research and visit the websites of the largest credit card issuers listed below to compare various credit card offers before you telephone them. Keep in mind that the interest rates credit card companies advertise prominently on their websites are reserved for those who earn a median to high income and have excellent credit –

www.bankofamerica.com www.capitalone.com
www.mbna.com www.americanexpress.com
www.discovercard.com www.fleet.com
www.citibank.com www.chase.com
www.wellsfargo.com www.firstunion.com
www.bankone.com www.providian.com

When you call and ask for a lower interest rate, your reasoning should be based on the argument that you deserve it because you’re an excellent customer or you’re getting better offers from other credit card banks.

Telephone Scripts

Script 1: I’ve visited the websites of several of your competitors, the ______ Bank and ______ Bank, and found that they are offering a _____ interest rate on purchases, which is _____ points lower than what I’m paying on my credit card. Are you willing to give me that interest rate?

Script 2: I am requesting that you reduce my current interest rate of 16.9% to 8.9% so that it is in line with what is available in the current market. I feel this is a fair rate since at least three major credit card issuers, _________, _________, and _________ are offering it to new customers like me who have an excellent credit rating.

Script 3: [Find out the current rate being offered at a credit card website and then lie and say] I have received a pre-approved offer in the mail from _______ Bank offering me a ____ interest rate card. Can you beat or match that offer or do I have to transfer my balance to their credit card?

Script 4: I visited your website and noticed that you are offering a ____ rate to attract new customers. I have been an excellent customer of yours for __ years and would like to receive the same rate being offered to new customers.

Script 5: I was about to sign up for a new credit card at the _______ website and thought I would call you and ask for a lower rate before doing so. If you don’t give me that rate today I will transfer my balance from your card to theirs as soon as I hang up the phone.

Letters

If a telephone call won’t work, odds are that a letter won’t work either. We provide letters only because some people prefer sending a letter instead of phoning a credit card company.

Letter 1: Threaten to Transfer Balance To Another Credit Card
Letter 2: Followup Letter When Phone Request For a Lower Rate is Denied
Letter 3: Request They Match or Beat a Competitor’s Offer

Follow-Up

Just because they say no today, doesn’t mean they will say no six months from now or a year from now. If they say no, then transfer the balance to another card if you qualify to do so. If you don’t qualify for a transfer because your credit score isn’t high enough, then spend the next six months paying down as much debt as you can and paying all of your bills on time so that you can raise your credit score and qualify for a better interest rate. Keep calling and asking for a lower rate every six months and continue improving your credit score.
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Franklin united how to guide to reduce your credit card debt

What has happened to the HOPE initiative, and the federal loan modification program? According to CNBC this morning, the 5 largest banks, led by Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, and Citigroup, are underperforming their smaller bank rivals in participating in getting loans modified to help curb foreclosures. The excuse these banks are using is the demand is too big to keep up with. Hello – have they not heard that there is a glut of people out there looking for work who could be hired to help them keep up with demand?

But the truth has been exposed in research done by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Recent studies show that the big banks do not want to participate in the modification process because they will lose money, while foreclosures will ultimately make them money. Why would a bank want to modify your loan to a rate of perhaps 2% (to help you out), when they can foreclose, resell your house, and charge 5+% to a new buyer, and collect all those bank fees (origination fee, underwriting, processing, etc) during the loan process as well?

The $75 billion HOPE program was set up as an incentive to banks to help out homeowners and stop the bleeding of home values. Here’s how it was supposed to work:

1. Banks receive $1000 for each loan modified
2. Banks receive an additional $1000 per year, for the first 3 years, that a modified loan stays current.
3. The borrower must be at least 60 days late on loan payments to qualify for modification under this program.


Here’s where this incentive process has backfired.
If you, Mr./Ms. Homeowner have managed to stay current, in spite of hardships (perhaps you are draining your IRA), you don’t qualify. If you are delinquent, you are a poor risk. If you are a poor risk, it is perhaps unlikely you will be able to keep your loan current, even if your loan is modified, so the banks will not collect the extra $3000 incentives. So – what loans are being modified? The people in the least amount of trouble are getting modifications approved.

Still, to date, only approximately 225,000 loans have been modified under the HOPE program. (This is only 9% of those eligible, according to a CNBC report yesterday). Considering there were almost 900,000 foreclosures in the first quarter of this year alone, I would call this program substantially less than a success – wouldn’t you?

According to Larry Summers, Director of the National Economic Council, in his interview on Meet the Press last Sunday, it is estimated that only 500,000 loan modifications will be completed by the end of this year. There are those, even within the Obama administration that are proposing that the $75 billion funding be used to make low interest lows directly to those in trouble, rather than directly to the banks.

What do you think? Please send me your comments, and I will forward them to the powers that be. Perhaps if we get enough input, we, the people, can come up with a solution that might work?

Best regards,

Shelby