Default/Foreclosure Prevention
HOMEOWNERS- BE AWARE OF SCAMS!!
What are some precautions I should take?
The National Foundation for Credit Counseling advises homeowners who choose to work with someone other than their lender to proceed with extreme caution if an individual or company:
- Calls itself a “mortgage consultant” or “foreclosure service”
- Encourages you to lease your home so you can buy it back over time
- Collects a fee before providing any services to you
- Instructs you to cease all contact with your lender, credit
or housing counselors, lawyer or other legitimate experts - Tells you to make your mortgage payments to anyone other
than your lender - Requires that you transfer your property deed or title
to anyone other than your lender - Tells you that, as part of the deal, you will need to move
out of your house for some period of time for remodeling
or other reasons - Offers to buy your house for cash at a fixed price that
is not set by the housing market at the time of sale
A HUD APPROVED HOUSING COUNSELING AGENCY WILL NOT CHARGE A FEE FOR SERVICES!
- TRIP's housing counselors can serve as a liaison between homeowners and their mortgage lenders to negotiate reasonable work-out solutions for both parties.
- TRIP works with homeowners to help prevent foreclosures while enabling the homeowner to determine the best financial solution for their specific situation.
Why work with a HUD approved housing counselor?
- Because a housing counselor is trained in this type of work. We work with homeowners and lenders everyday to assist in preserving homeownership. A housing counselor is familiar with the foreclosure process and the qualifications for foreclosure alternatives programs offered by lenders.
- A housing counselor will give you an honest assessment of your situation. Some homeowners will not be able to keep their home. A housing counselor can provide you with options that are available in the case that your home is not affordable and cannot be made affordable.
- A housing counselor can help ensure all paperwork is filled out correctly, and provide homeowners with a checklist of all required documentation needed for modification applications, forbearance applications, short sale applications, etc.
- TRIP receives funding which allows us to provide counseling at NO CHARGE to the homeowner.
- A December 2010 report to Congress stated that homeowners who received foreclosure prevention counseling through the NFMC program were 70% more likely to cure their foreclosure!
They also found that on average NFMC counsled clients who received loan modifications reduced their loan payments by $267 more each month – or more than $3,200 per year –than they would have without NFMC counseling.
Full Article: CLICK HERE
TRIP receives funding from:
and 
TRIP partners with
Other Local HUD approved counseling agencies:
- Affordable Housing Partnership (AHP)
- Albany County Rural Housing Alliance (ACRHA)
- Better Neighborhoods Inc. (BNI)
- Housing Resources of Columbia County (HRCC)
- United Tenants of Albany (UTA)
And Local Legal Services:
Documents required for Counseling:
- Document Checklist
- Client Intake Form
- Homeowner Information Worksheet
- Making Home Affordable Program Worksheet
- Suggested Contents of a Hardship Letter
- Lender Info Release
- Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Agreement
- Default Counseling Agreement
- Client/Counselor Contract
- IRS form 4506T
Additional Information:
- Default & Forclosure Video courtesy of ACHRA & HRCC
For more information or if you are having trouble with your mortgage, please contact:
TRIP's HomeOwnership Center at (518) 690-0020 x228
LINKS & RESOURCES:
| benefits.gov | The official benefits website of the U.S. government. Informs citizens of benefits they may be eligible for. Provides information on how to apply for assistance. |
|---|---|
| hud.gov | HUD's webpage regarding avoiding forclosure. |
| mha.gov | The Making Home Affordable Website. Provides information about the federal refinance & modification programs |
| findEHLP.com | Information on HUD's Eemergency Homeowner Loan Program. TRIP will be administering the program in the Capital District. Also visit our info page here. |
Copyright 2007 Troy Rehabilitation & Improvement Program (TRIP) Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without authorization.