LOAN MODIFICATION AND FORECLOSURE ASSISTANCE
Loan modification is the process of negotiating with your lender to reach agreement on modifying the terms of repayment of your existing home mortgage to enable you to continue making your payments despite some hardship that you and your family may be experiencing.
Since foreclosure is expensive and the market is currently saturated with homes, lenders are better off negotiating with willing and able existing borrowers than taking back property.In fact, states like California have enacted laws that obligate lenders to negotiate in good faith with borrowers.Homeowners can negotiate with lenders by themselves, but lenders are usually more responsive to lawyers.
Lenders and loan servicers are very busy with desperate homeowners trying to save their homes from foreclosure.They simply do not have the manpower to help everybody at the same time.Many people are simply getting lost in the system and losing their homes to foreclosure when they could have worked it out with their lender.When you are represented by a lawyer, however, the calls and letters usually get answered faster.If your finances are getting stretched too thin by having to pay ever-rising adjustable rates, you cannot afford to keep waiting. With the help of an attorney, you have a better chance of getting your loan modified faster.
The terms of loan modification agreements vary by lender.However, they usually involve the reduction of a mortgage’s interest rate for a few years or permanently.Banks are also extending the amortization term (for example, for 40 years instead of 30 years), which will reduce the monthly mortgage payments.Unfortunately, banks do not often willingly reduce the principal amount of the loan, but they do agree to do it in a few occasions.
At the Orantes Law Firm, we take pride in obtaining modifications for our clients that allow them to keep their homes even in these difficult times.However, the earlier you start talking with your lender, the better your chances are of negotiating a fixed rate and a payment that you can manage.
If you can afford your home under reasonable terms, then you may be eligible for a loan modification. Predatory Lending
Since many lenders took part in the predatory lending practices prevalent in the last few years, if you refinanced your home in the last three years, lenders may be more willing to negotiate a modification of your loan with you rather than face litigation.At the Orantes Law Firm, we will explain whether the facts of your case would enable you to file a lawsuit to vindicate your rights and either take your case to trial or settle with your lender under mutually beneficial terms.Stripping the Second, Third and Other Loans Secured by Your HomeHolders of second mortgages, home equity lines of credit and other loans secured by your real estate have no motivation to negotiate with you because of the nature of their legal rights.Consequently, they will either write off and sell your loan or harass you to no end.Fortunately, the rare state of real estate at this moment in history presents many owners with the opportunity to eliminate such junior loans in a case under Chapter 13 of the Bankruptcy Code.The filing of Chapter 13 over Chapter 7 is favored by lenders and the law. The Orantes Law Firm can handle your Chapter 13 case.