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Taliancich first worried he might lose his home when he hadn't received anything official after he made the reduced payments for a few months. He started recording all of his phone calls with the bank in April and shared his recordings and other documents with HuffPost. Every time he called the bank he spoke to a different person, and almost every person said a different thing about what would happen.On April 15, when Taliancich called the bank to make his monthly payment, he explained to the man on the line that he was told in January to start monthly payments of $691.60. Since then, he said, he has received "various vague letters saying, 'Thank you for sending us information,'" but no letter with official confirmation about the trial plan.
The bank confirmed that Taliancich has been making his payments. "Those payments will be monitored," the man said, before adding that the official trial period wouldn't actually start until Taliancich received an official letter. "Once you complete that trial payment which is mentioned on that letter you will receive further modification paperwork. At this moment in time the letter has not been sent out to you since the review process has not been completed yet."
"Right."
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"I was constantly reassured every time I would make that smaller payment amount that I was doing the right thing," Taliancich said, adding that he'd been under the impression he was in an actual trial period. "I'm worried about the fact that it seems to be violating this foreclosure clause in the government program."
"You were not in any formal trial period. You were advised to make 31 percent of your monthly gross payment," the woman said. "Unfortunately, with the new process that was rolled over in the middle of you being in this review, unfortunately, it did start your review over again. That's why you got the package sent out in May. We had to follow the government's guidelines on this new process. All we can do is follow their procedures, and unfortunately you were one of the homeowners that got caught in the middle." More at
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/14/post_547_n_757979.html">HUFFPO
As a person who has worked in the financial industry for years, and who has gone through the HAMP process, I have a few bits of *advice for anyone going through the HAMP process, today:
1.
Most importantly, make full payments vs. the reduced "trial payments" until your loan modification is finalized, in writing. ~ IMO, some banks use a "reduced trial payment" as a means to a nefarious end. If you're making a reduced monthly payment, you're not meeting the terms of your original, signed, mortgage agreement. As such, you can be a victim of foreclosure if/when the bank fails to finalize a modification.
Short term effect on liquidations (22 Sep 2010) HAMP's biggest effect so far has been to temporarily slow foreclosures, due to a freeze imposed on all loans in trial modifications.
In Aug, however, only 18 thousand loans were newly protected from foreclosure via a new HAMP trial plan, while 54 thousand loans were newly exposed to foreclosure due to the cancellation of a HAMP trial or permanent plan. CLEAR ON MONEYWhen I insisted on making full payments until our lender finalized our modification, I was asked "if you can afford the full payments why are you applying for a modification?" I told them the truth, we rob from Peter to pay Paul. I went on to say that it wasn't any of their !@#* business, given technically, we qualified for a modification and have been honest about our financial situation.
2.
Prepare to have your tax documentation lost. ~ For some reason, I've heard several stories about lost tax documentation. The bank we dealt with lost our documentation three or four times.
Get a name and a fax number of a person who is responsible for handling such documentation, and demand that bank personnel call you when they receive faxed copies. Make sure that someone takes ownership and you follow up.3.
Correspond by email or mail vs. phone so you have legal documentation regarding what you're being told. ~ Keep all correspondence (emails) until your loan is finalized and beyond. Saying "I spoke to Bob and he said..." will not be enough. Get everything you're told, in writing.
4. If you're told delays in finalization are due to Fannie Mac or Freddie Mae, not the bank, get Fannie or Freddie involved ASAP. Make a three way phone call, if you have to. Or, email a rep from each company and ask that they properly coordinate to resolve your issue.
5.
Follow up on your final modification for at least three months. Make sure your due date and payment amounts are correct etc. Our lender tried to change our due date, so we were a month behind after we finalized. I have no idea why. But I insisted they make it right and I monitor monthly.
*I'm not an attorney and not in a position to legally advise anyone. I am merely a person who worked in finance for years, who has completed a successful modification. Best of luck to anyone seeking relief through HAMP.
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