I can't pay my mortgage. What can I do about it? Step 4 of 4
STEP 4 - Understand the process of documenting your hardship
Your initial request for forbearance may not require you to send detailed information regarding your hardship. However, further extensions or and end-game repayment plan or loan modification will require much more detail.
Documenting your hardship is a complicated process that may remind you of when you applied for the mortgage loan. You will have to show financial documents including your tax returns, pay stubs, and bank statements. You will also have to provide explanation letters that support your claim for a hardship.
Contrary to when you applied for the mortgage loan, this time you won't have a motivated loan officer or mortgage broker taking the lead in the processing of documents. In other words, you will have to send documents yourself to your servicer and follow the instructions given by servicer representatives.
At this stage you must be ready for a rough ride. You must understand that there will be inescapable uncertainty in the process.
One of the most important rules for you is to document everything. For your protection, keep a detailed log of every conversation you have with servicer representatives. Unless you have the memory of an elephant, in all likelihood you will forget some of the items that the servicer representative may request.
You should also maintain copies of every document you send to the servicer because, guess what, you might have to send them again! Mortgage servicers process thousands of requests every day. As a result, documents are sometimes lost or misplaced. I recommend that you scan every single document and keep it in your file so that you can respond promptly to any requests from the servicer.
Keep in mind that requesting help from your mortgage servicer involves a complicated process. The servicer receives documents from you and assigns them to a case manager. Your documents are reviewed by underwriters that look for every important detail under the microscope of highly technical government and market regulations. If your file is missing any of those details, it gets kicked back to the end of the line, causing further delays.
You must be patient and persistent with the servicer. Not only the process is cumbersome, but servicer representatives are not perfect. They are humans, like you and me, who happen to work under enormous pressure in their call centers. Yes, servicer representatives have the best of intentions, but sometimes they don't give borrowers the right advice when it comes to what documents are needed.
Therefore, it is your burden to be on top of your game when processing a request for hardship. If you leave it up to the servicer, you may fall victim to miscommunication and misunderstandings that may lead you to an incomplete package and underwriting rejection. Worse yet, you may end up being referred to foreclosure.
Call me at (407) 443-3833 or visit my page at www.MiltonTheRealtor.com for more information.
* - Don't forget to connect with me on LinkedIn, Facebook (English and Spanish) and Twitter!
Your initial request for forbearance may not require you to send detailed information regarding your hardship. However, further extensions or and end-game repayment plan or loan modification will require much more detail.
Documenting your hardship is a complicated process that may remind you of when you applied for the mortgage loan. You will have to show financial documents including your tax returns, pay stubs, and bank statements. You will also have to provide explanation letters that support your claim for a hardship.
Contrary to when you applied for the mortgage loan, this time you won't have a motivated loan officer or mortgage broker taking the lead in the processing of documents. In other words, you will have to send documents yourself to your servicer and follow the instructions given by servicer representatives.
At this stage you must be ready for a rough ride. You must understand that there will be inescapable uncertainty in the process.
One of the most important rules for you is to document everything. For your protection, keep a detailed log of every conversation you have with servicer representatives. Unless you have the memory of an elephant, in all likelihood you will forget some of the items that the servicer representative may request.
You should also maintain copies of every document you send to the servicer because, guess what, you might have to send them again! Mortgage servicers process thousands of requests every day. As a result, documents are sometimes lost or misplaced. I recommend that you scan every single document and keep it in your file so that you can respond promptly to any requests from the servicer.
Keep in mind that requesting help from your mortgage servicer involves a complicated process. The servicer receives documents from you and assigns them to a case manager. Your documents are reviewed by underwriters that look for every important detail under the microscope of highly technical government and market regulations. If your file is missing any of those details, it gets kicked back to the end of the line, causing further delays.
You must be patient and persistent with the servicer. Not only the process is cumbersome, but servicer representatives are not perfect. They are humans, like you and me, who happen to work under enormous pressure in their call centers. Yes, servicer representatives have the best of intentions, but sometimes they don't give borrowers the right advice when it comes to what documents are needed.
Therefore, it is your burden to be on top of your game when processing a request for hardship. If you leave it up to the servicer, you may fall victim to miscommunication and misunderstandings that may lead you to an incomplete package and underwriting rejection. Worse yet, you may end up being referred to foreclosure.
Call me at (407) 443-3833 or visit my page at www.MiltonTheRealtor.com for more information.
* - Don't forget to connect with me on LinkedIn, Facebook (English and Spanish) and Twitter!
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