My first thought is that of hope. I sincerely hope the majority of homeowners who currently allow their homes to go to foreclosure without ever exploring their options to avoid foreclosure will educate themselves and take advantage of the many viable alternatives available to them.

It’s easy to just walk away and give up – the path of least resistance, for certain. However, the foreclosure haunt continues for years affecting credit, employment and even security clearances. With the advent of HAFA as an additional alternative, foreclosure can be avoided.

Sometimes the best option is to walk away and allow your home to go into foreclosure, but if you just walk away, you could be throwing away $1000’s of dollars in relocation assistance you could obtain through HAFA. Not to mention, you could protect yourself from a hovering deficiency judgment for the monies lost in the foreclosure by the bank/servicer. It is well worth the time to educate yourself.

One of my passions is to inform the public about their options to avoid foreclosure. I setup my Phoenix real estate “Home Rescue Network” website to do just that. Distressed homeowners who have negative equity or who are behind on their mortgage need to take the time to educate themselves. There is a comprehensive list of options to avoid foreclosure available on the site and a questionnaire to help determine eligibility for the new government programs.

My National network of experienced top-notch brokers and agents across the U.S. are standing by to help homeowners understand their options to avoid foreclosure. The black hole of foreclosure is haunting and can be avoided, especially now. If you’re interested in more information, contact me directly.

I believe HAFA will help simplify and streamline the use of short sales and the deed in lieu of foreclosure (DIL) options with the use of the top features HAFA provides including:

1. Providing financial incentives to borrowers, servicers AND investors

2. Requiring servicers to release borrowers from future liability for the debt (no deficiency judgments)

3. Standardized processes, documents and timeframes will be used to streamline and standardize the short sale process

4. Complementing HAMP by providing workable alternatives to homeowners who are HAMP eligible

5. Eliminating the need for additional analysis on eligibility by utilizing financial and hardship information collected in conjunction with HAMP

6. Pre-approved short payoff terms prior to listing the property will be allowed

Roughly 24% of all properties with a mortgage (over 11,000,000 homeowners) have negative equity positions with their mortgage. I look forward to the seeing the results HAFA will provide to borrowers in avoiding foreclosure and how the goals of HAFA to standardize the process flow, minimize the performance timelines and standardize documentation of short sales will play out

Want to find out more about HAFA and Avoiding Foreclosure?, then visit Joe Martin’s site on Understanding HAFA for your needs.

Does it seem so difficult to keep up with your housing loan? When this happens, it is common for people to think that they might lose their home to their loan providers. Instead of beating yourself up with this possibility, why not consider mortgage loan modification? This is a program that allows your loan to be reinstated so that its terms are more suited to your financial capabilities. You just need to get yourself familiar with the software and you can start using it to your advantage.

So what is a mortgage loan modification? How will it work to your advantage? Basically, it is just like a refinancing modification program which allows you to adjust your existing loan to more affordable terms. This means that you don’t need to apply for a re-loan, instead, you just need to modify your loan. The process makes it much easier both for you and your loan provider.

Now, who will be eligible for this program? Only those who applied their loans before January 1, 2010 are eligible for this program. Eligibility for a mortgage loan modification has two classifications. One is for people with updated mortgage payments and the other is for those who have missed payments but have paid at least 31% of their total mortgage.

The government of course will be in the middle since it’s a mortgage loan modification. Basing on the modification program, the government subsidizes the cost which results to the drop in payments to a rate of 31%. If you’re asking how else a loan may be modified to suit the financial capability of the mortgagee, there are a number of possibilities. The interest rate on the loan may be reduced, the terms of payment may be extended up to forty years, the mortgagee may be offered another type of loan or a combination of any of these three may be applied possibilities. Aside from this subsidy, the government is also actively pursuing a campaign that motivates banks and other loan providers to participate in the program.

Before anything else though, it is crucial that you know the difference between a loan modification agreement and a forbearance agreement. The temporary solution offered to mortgagees who are experiencing financial problems that will soon be over is called loan modification agreement while the program for those who are unable to pay an existing loan is the forbearance agreement.

If paying your mortgage has been a major issue, it might be time to apply for a mortgage modification. Worrying alone won’t save you. You have to act on the situation and act on it decisively by exploring your options for getting the best loan modification program for you

Stop Foreclosure: Documents Your Lender Needs From You

Today, Freddie Mac released a new video aimed to help people who are in trouble with their mortgage and wondering about a loan modification titled “Stop Foreclosure: Documents Your Lender Needs To Help You“. For anyone right here in Pennsylvania who is speaking with their lender about a loan modification, this video is helpful and shows what documents are needed in the process. With the crush of phone calls from people inquiring about a loan modification, many lenders are swamped. This video does a good job of helping people be more fully prepared in advance of calling their lender.

Pennsylvania Loan Modification: You Will Need These Documents

• A copy of your most recent paystubs that show your net take home pay
• For any other debt such as credit cards, car loans, etc. – have account balances and minimum payment amounts
• Any second mortgage or home equity line of credit statements that you have
• A copy of your last years tax return
• A copy of a recent mortgage statement

Pennsylvania Loan Modification: Hardship Letter Is Important

If you are wondering if you really need to write a hardship letter — don’t wonder. A well written hardship letter is a vital part of the loan modification process.