Loan Modification Specialists?

Anyone that has been worried about their mortgage at one time or another these days has likely thought about a loan modification.  With all the “specialists” and “help” out there it’s tough to know who to trust.

The definition of a loan modification as per HUD is:

A Loan Modification is a permanent change in one or more of the terms of a mortgagor’s loan, allows the loan to be reinstated, and results in a payment the mortgagor can afford.

There’s some key questions that you might want to ask your supposed helper.

1. Who does the actual loan modification work? – Since the work is and can be done by the homeowner, why & who is doing this work?  – If the person who is “helping” isn’t the one doing the work, you might want to get details on their “staff.”  Other questions off this line – is this person an owner of the company, an employee or are they an “independent contract” who is in a MLM company?
2. How many successful Loan Modifications have they done – the individual person, not the company as a whole?  Do they have references?
3. Is this their full time job?
   
4. How much does it cost and what’s included?

If you have an FHA mortgage then you might qualify for your lender to “pre-approve” your short sale with what is called a “Pre-Foreclosure Sale.”  I can’t tell you specifically how the two are really different at the end of the day.   However, I can tell you that we are closing short sales in record time thanks to the FHA process and guidelines.

What are the benefits outside of the quick closing?  The Seller can sometimes get up to $1,000 at the closing for moving expenses!

One side note is that if your Servicer/Lender is unresponsive, like Bank of America, you have to actually APPLY by calling and specifically requesting to Apply for the FHA Pre Foreclosure Sale plan.  They’ve got 60 days to review your application.

Define Regular?

In Florida, 40% of the sales are short sale.  So they are regular sales, with one big exception.  THEY ARE A GREAT DEAL!

They are better than regular resale listings because of the discount.  Also, they are typically in much better condition than Foreclosure or REO homes that you see.  Most HUD or foreclosures need at least $5,000 or more in repairs, in comparison, all of the atlanta short sale listings listed here need no repairs other than what you would normally do in a resale.  Just add your personal touch!

Short sales do require more patience as you are dealing with a bank instead of a person, so repsonse times can suffer.  That’s why you need an expert on both sides helping you!