Can I Save My Home From Foreclosure?

The speech is called “Everyday Money,” because I believe it’s the basic choices you make every day with your money that will determine whether you have enough or not as you get nearer to retirement. Companies hire me to give this speech because they know that employees that feel more secure about their money are more productive overall.

I think the speech provides good value –I discuss spending less and saving more and I provide some strategies to make the process of reevaluating your financial life a little easier.

But I’ve learned even more by listening to the questions I’m asked at the end of each speech. By a show of hands, these employees tell me that most of them have someone close to them who has been unemployed for at least a year. Some are nearly broke from helping bail out a sibling, child or parent who lost their job. Others got sick and didn’t have enough (or any) health insurance. And still others are suffering from a severe cut in family income, usually because a spouse or partners has lost a job.

I’ve been surprised by how many people are still asking about loan modifications and how they can participate in the program. Here’s some basic information that might help:

The best place to start is with a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) certified housing counselor, who can get your lender on the phone and start the process to figure out whether you’ll qualify for a loan modification. You can call (888) 995-HOPE or you can go online to CredAbility.org to work with one of their HUD-certified housing counselors.

If you’ve been working with one of the big banks, and believe you have been unfairly rejected for a loan modification, you can file a complaint with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) at HelpWithMyBank.gov It will take their investigators some time to look into your situation (it can take several months), but if you get rejected, you can appeal the decision at the same website.

Finally, you have to be prepared for the bank to tell you you don’t qualify for a loan modification. The government’s loan modification program is entirely voluntary, and each lender sets its own standards of acceptance for the program.

If you don’t get a loan modification, you need to figure out a Plan B – what will you do if you can’t stay in your home.

While this isn’t the easiest thing to think about, it’s important – and hopefully, you’ll never have to put this plan into action.

Ilyce Glink is a best-selling author, real estate columnist, and web series host. She is the founder and CEO of Think Glink Media and the managing editor of the Equifax Finance Blog. Follow her on Twitter: @Glink.

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