Mortgage Firms Prodded to Modify More Loans
By RUTH SIMON
The Obama administration is pressing mortgage-servicing companies to step up their efforts to modify troubled loans under its housing-rescue program, the latest sign of frustration with the pace at which mortgage companies are reworking troubled loans.
"We believe there is a general need for servicers to devote substantially more resources to this program for it to fully succeed and achieve the objectives we all share," Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said in a letter to 25 mortgage-servicing firms.
The letter was sent Thursday to the chief executives of companies that have signed contracts to participate in the government program, which provides financial incentives for mortgage companies and investors to reduce borrowers' payments to affordable levels.
More than 270,000 borrowers have received modification offers under the program. But housing counselors complain many borrowers are waiting for help as mortgage-servicing companies get up to speed. The administration has said its program could help as many as four million homeowners.
The administration has "started to see a significant ramp-up" in modification activity, the letter said. But it added, "there appears to be substantial variation among servicers in performance and borrower experience." It called on mortgage-servicing companies to beef up staffing and training, and to provide "an escalation path for borrowers dissatisfied with the service they have received." Freddie Mac, which serves as compliance agent for the program, will be developing a "second look" process in which it will audit a sample of rejected modification applications, the letter said.
The letter also called on mortgage companies to suggest ways the administration can improve the program's design.
Housing counselors say they have been disappointed by the lack of progress under the administration's program. "We are not getting anywhere near the level of resolutions we expected," said Bruce Dorpalen, national director of housing counseling for Acorn Housing Corp., which works with financially troubled borrowers. "The real issue is that generally the servicers are not up to speed."
Often, housing counselors "must educate the staff of the servicers about their own program," said Maeve Elise Brown, executive director of Housing and Economic Rights Advocates in Oakland, Calif., which counsels homeowners. "Homeowners on their own are not able to navigate the system."
Write to Ruth Simon at ruth.simon@wsj.com
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Home Loan Times in India
Home Loan Times in India
In the past few months the Indian home loan market has seen highly varied changes, home loan rates went all the way up to 14 percent, however due to the market downturn the government of India is taking steps to bring home loans closer to the common man. Perhaps this is the only bonus for the middle class man in the past few years, when the property prices and home loan rates shot up and the middle class man could not afford to buy a property.
The GOI has announced a special package for loans up to Rs 5 lakh where the banks reduced the rate to 8 per cent. Loans up to Rs 20 lakh will be charged 9.25 per cent. These rates could be fixed for five years. Also, there will be no processing fees and free insurance on these loans. But these loans are being provided only by the public sector banks.
Thanks to the NHB housing loans are expected to get cheaper as Housing finance companies will get access to cheaper funds with the National Housing Bank providing the special refinance fund from the Reserve Bank at 8 per cent interest rate, smaller housing finance companies join the ranks of major banks and housing finance companies to give loans below Rs20 lakh at attractive interest rates.
The NHB is even looking at the possibility of restructuring reverse mortgage scheme to senior citizens in association with insurance companies like the Life insurance Corporation of India. However, for loans above Rs 20 lakh, there has been no respite yet, but more rate cuts are expected. With the consistent fall in the inflation numbers RBI is expected to cut rates. In turn, you could expect banks to cut housing loan rates.
In the short to medium term home loan rates are expected to fall, which means it is a good time to buy a home especially if it is not just an investment but a home for personal use. As the expectation is high on fall of interest rates, home loans would be wiser to be taken on floating interest rate rather than fixed interest rate. At a future point of time you can consider converting to fixed interest rate when interest rates stabilize.
The effects of the economy are such that banks have made due diligence before disbursal very strict, and the margins to be provided by customers are higher now. The present scenario suggests that saving money is better than spending money, save and invest for a brighter future!
In the past few months the Indian home loan market has seen highly varied changes, home loan rates went all the way up to 14 percent, however due to the market downturn the government of India is taking steps to bring home loans closer to the common man. Perhaps this is the only bonus for the middle class man in the past few years, when the property prices and home loan rates shot up and the middle class man could not afford to buy a property.
The GOI has announced a special package for loans up to Rs 5 lakh where the banks reduced the rate to 8 per cent. Loans up to Rs 20 lakh will be charged 9.25 per cent. These rates could be fixed for five years. Also, there will be no processing fees and free insurance on these loans. But these loans are being provided only by the public sector banks.
Thanks to the NHB housing loans are expected to get cheaper as Housing finance companies will get access to cheaper funds with the National Housing Bank providing the special refinance fund from the Reserve Bank at 8 per cent interest rate, smaller housing finance companies join the ranks of major banks and housing finance companies to give loans below Rs20 lakh at attractive interest rates.
The NHB is even looking at the possibility of restructuring reverse mortgage scheme to senior citizens in association with insurance companies like the Life insurance Corporation of India. However, for loans above Rs 20 lakh, there has been no respite yet, but more rate cuts are expected. With the consistent fall in the inflation numbers RBI is expected to cut rates. In turn, you could expect banks to cut housing loan rates.
In the short to medium term home loan rates are expected to fall, which means it is a good time to buy a home especially if it is not just an investment but a home for personal use. As the expectation is high on fall of interest rates, home loans would be wiser to be taken on floating interest rate rather than fixed interest rate. At a future point of time you can consider converting to fixed interest rate when interest rates stabilize.
The effects of the economy are such that banks have made due diligence before disbursal very strict, and the margins to be provided by customers are higher now. The present scenario suggests that saving money is better than spending money, save and invest for a brighter future!
Monday, July 13, 2009
Mortgage Firms Prodded to Modify More Loans
The Obama administration is pressing mortgage-servicing companies to step up their efforts to modify troubled loans under its housing-rescue program, the latest sign of frustration with the pace at which mortgage companies are reworking troubled loans.
"We believe there is a general need for servicers to devote substantially more resources to this program for it to fully succeed and achieve the objectives we all share," Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said in a letter to 25 mortgage-servicing firms.
The letter was sent Thursday to the chief executives of companies that have signed contracts to participate in the government program, which provides financial incentives for mortgage companies and investors to reduce borrowers' payments to affordable levels.
More than 270,000 borrowers have received modification offers under the program. But housing counselors complain many borrowers are waiting for help as mortgage-servicing companies get up to speed. The administration has said its program could help as many as four million homeowners.
The administration has "started to see a significant ramp-up" in modification activity, the letter said. But it added, "there appears to be substantial variation among servicers in performance and borrower experience." It called on mortgage-servicing companies to beef up staffing and training, and to provide "an escalation path for borrowers dissatisfied with the service they have received." Freddie Mac, which serves as compliance agent for the program, will be developing a "second look" process in which it will audit a sample of rejected modification applications, the letter said.
The letter also called on mortgage companies to suggest ways the administration can improve the program's design.
Housing counselors say they have been disappointed by the lack of progress under the administration's program. "We are not getting anywhere near the level of resolutions we expected," said Bruce Dorpalen, national director of housing counseling for Acorn Housing Corp., which works with financially troubled borrowers. "The real issue is that generally the servicers are not up to speed."
Often, housing counselors "must educate the staff of the servicers about their own program," said Maeve Elise Brown, executive director of Housing and Economic Rights Advocates in Oakland, Calif., which counsels homeowners. "Homeowners on their own are not able to navigate the system."
RUTH SIMON
"We believe there is a general need for servicers to devote substantially more resources to this program for it to fully succeed and achieve the objectives we all share," Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said in a letter to 25 mortgage-servicing firms.
The letter was sent Thursday to the chief executives of companies that have signed contracts to participate in the government program, which provides financial incentives for mortgage companies and investors to reduce borrowers' payments to affordable levels.
More than 270,000 borrowers have received modification offers under the program. But housing counselors complain many borrowers are waiting for help as mortgage-servicing companies get up to speed. The administration has said its program could help as many as four million homeowners.
The administration has "started to see a significant ramp-up" in modification activity, the letter said. But it added, "there appears to be substantial variation among servicers in performance and borrower experience." It called on mortgage-servicing companies to beef up staffing and training, and to provide "an escalation path for borrowers dissatisfied with the service they have received." Freddie Mac, which serves as compliance agent for the program, will be developing a "second look" process in which it will audit a sample of rejected modification applications, the letter said.
The letter also called on mortgage companies to suggest ways the administration can improve the program's design.
Housing counselors say they have been disappointed by the lack of progress under the administration's program. "We are not getting anywhere near the level of resolutions we expected," said Bruce Dorpalen, national director of housing counseling for Acorn Housing Corp., which works with financially troubled borrowers. "The real issue is that generally the servicers are not up to speed."
Often, housing counselors "must educate the staff of the servicers about their own program," said Maeve Elise Brown, executive director of Housing and Economic Rights Advocates in Oakland, Calif., which counsels homeowners. "Homeowners on their own are not able to navigate the system."
RUTH SIMON
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Buyer's Remorse Hits Vegas Project
REAL ESTATE
JULY 6, 2009
Buyer's Remorse Hits Vegas Project
One of the costliest and highest-profile condominium developments in the country -- the $8.4 billion City Center project in Las Vegas -- is facing a revolt from some early buyers.
Some buyers who signed contracts are demanding significant price reductions, and have hired a law firm to take their grievances to the project's principal developer, gambling company MGM Mirage . Others want their deposits back. Some are using a Web site, citycentercondodepositgroup.blogspot.com , to air their grievances.
So far, buyers have put down $313 million in deposits on 1,500 units in the 2,440-unit complex. Those who agreed to buy early on now fear they will take possession of condos whose market values are far below what they agreed to pay. Many of the contracts were signed in 2006 and 2007, when Vegas was booming.
The City Center project under construction in Las Vegas.
"It is simply not possible by any stretch of the imagination to close on the units at the contracted price," said Mark Connot, a partner with Hutchinson & Steffen, a Las Vegas law firm hired to represent a handful of buyers demanding price reductions. "Our position is they need to adjust the price to market value. And until that's done I don't think they will find any buyers."
MGM Mirage said it isn't offering discounts to current buyers, many of whom bought during a special promotion period for "friends and family" of MGM Mirage. A spokesman said it is too early to know how the units are valued in the current market. In Las Vegas, home-sale prices are down more than 30% from a year earlier.
The rising discontent is the latest sign of trouble to hit City Center, the colossus owned by MGM Mirage and Dubai World , the investment arm of the Persian Gulf state. The project narrowly avoided bankruptcy earlier this year, and the partners only recently resolved an internal legal feud.
The 67-acre project, due to open in November, includes 5,000 hotel rooms and 2,440 condos rising in sleek towers over the Las Vegas Strip. The development will have a public parks system, its own monorail, fire department, mall and theater.
"What we're doing is evaluating the market," said MGM Mirage Chief Executive Jim Murren , who put deposits down on two City Center condos. He added that he understands buyers "want clarity in an environment of uncertainty. In fact, that's what I want as an owner."
The City Center condos range in price from $600,000 for a smaller studio unit to more than $9 million for an expansive penthouse suite built atop of the Mandarin Oriental hotel. So far, the most expensive unit under contract is a 3,910-square-foot suite at the Mandarin for $9.4 million, or $2,392 per square foot.
It is unclear how many buyers are agitating for better deals or for deposit refunds, but real-estate analysts in the area have raised fears that a good portion of them may no longer be able to secure financing and could just decide to walk away, leaving their units empty.
How the dispute plays out has serious implications for the Las Vegas real-estate market.
"City Center is vital to everything we want to see happen in Vegas in the future," said Dennis Smith, president of Home Builders Research Inc., a consultancy firm in Las Vegas. "It will change the Strip. We don't want to see thousands of empty condo units sitting there."
The City Center units are the most expensive of the 7,000 luxury condos for sale or under construction in the Las Vegas area.
Complicating matters, many of the first to sign contracts were the company's biggest spending gamblers and its own executives who were enticed by the project's "friends and family" promotion. In addition to Mr. Murren, MGM Mirage shareholder Kirk Kerkorian is among the early condo buyers.
"You have 1,500 condo buyers right now who wish they'd never put this thing into contract and most of them have some kind of relationship with MGM Mirage," said one buyer who put a $600,000 deposit on a $3 million unit, and would like to get his deposit back. "It's tricky for MGM Mirage. You make your best customers angry."
JULY 6, 2009
Buyer's Remorse Hits Vegas Project
One of the costliest and highest-profile condominium developments in the country -- the $8.4 billion City Center project in Las Vegas -- is facing a revolt from some early buyers.
Some buyers who signed contracts are demanding significant price reductions, and have hired a law firm to take their grievances to the project's principal developer, gambling company MGM Mirage
So far, buyers have put down $313 million in deposits on 1,500 units in the 2,440-unit complex. Those who agreed to buy early on now fear they will take possession of condos whose market values are far below what they agreed to pay. Many of the contracts were signed in 2006 and 2007, when Vegas was booming.
The City Center project under construction in Las Vegas.
"It is simply not possible by any stretch of the imagination to close on the units at the contracted price," said Mark Connot, a partner with Hutchinson & Steffen, a Las Vegas law firm hired to represent a handful of buyers demanding price reductions. "Our position is they need to adjust the price to market value. And until that's done I don't think they will find any buyers."
MGM Mirage said it isn't offering discounts to current buyers, many of whom bought during a special promotion period for "friends and family" of MGM Mirage. A spokesman said it is too early to know how the units are valued in the current market. In Las Vegas, home-sale prices are down more than 30% from a year earlier.
The rising discontent is the latest sign of trouble to hit City Center, the colossus owned by MGM Mirage and Dubai World
The 67-acre project, due to open in November, includes 5,000 hotel rooms and 2,440 condos rising in sleek towers over the Las Vegas Strip. The development will have a public parks system, its own monorail, fire department, mall and theater.
"What we're doing is evaluating the market," said MGM Mirage Chief Executive Jim Murren
The City Center condos range in price from $600,000 for a smaller studio unit to more than $9 million for an expansive penthouse suite built atop of the Mandarin Oriental hotel. So far, the most expensive unit under contract is a 3,910-square-foot suite at the Mandarin for $9.4 million, or $2,392 per square foot.
It is unclear how many buyers are agitating for better deals or for deposit refunds, but real-estate analysts in the area have raised fears that a good portion of them may no longer be able to secure financing and could just decide to walk away, leaving their units empty.
How the dispute plays out has serious implications for the Las Vegas real-estate market.
"City Center is vital to everything we want to see happen in Vegas in the future," said Dennis Smith, president of Home Builders Research Inc., a consultancy firm in Las Vegas. "It will change the Strip. We don't want to see thousands of empty condo units sitting there."
The City Center units are the most expensive of the 7,000 luxury condos for sale or under construction in the Las Vegas area.
Complicating matters, many of the first to sign contracts were the company's biggest spending gamblers and its own executives who were enticed by the project's "friends and family" promotion. In addition to Mr. Murren, MGM Mirage shareholder Kirk Kerkorian is among the early condo buyers.
"You have 1,500 condo buyers right now who wish they'd never put this thing into contract and most of them have some kind of relationship with MGM Mirage," said one buyer who put a $600,000 deposit on a $3 million unit, and would like to get his deposit back. "It's tricky for MGM Mirage. You make your best customers angry."
New York City Seeks to Turn Condos Into Affordable Housing
REAL ESTATE
JULY 8, 2009, 9:26 P.M. ET
New York City Seeks to Turn Condos Into Affordable Housing
New York City announced Wednesday a pilot program to turn empty or stalled condominium developments into affordable housing, an idea consumer advocates have been pushing for years.
The program, which aims to convert as many as 400 units, is designed to provide grants to real-estate developers and lenders to subsidize the completion of developments if the owners agree to turn the building into rental units for middle-income families, which in New York means an income of up to $126,720 for a family of four.
The pilot project will be funded with $20 million of city funds, but could be expanded at a later date if initial results proved successful.
"It's not going to solve all of these problems by any means but it allows us to throw out a net and see what we pull in," said Marc Jahr, president of New York City's Housing Development Corporation. "We see an opportunity here to really capture affordability at a relatively inexpensive price to the public and to do it in a timely manner."
The move comes as cities nationwide are struggling to deal with the glut of empty and unfinished construction projects that are threatening to destabilize some communities. New York City has more than 140 stalled construction projects, said Marc Jahr, president of New York City's Housing Development Corporation.
Nationwide, about 51,000 condos were looking for buyers in May and more supply is on the way. Some 93,000 new condo units will be completed nationally this year, including more than 12,000 units in New York and northern New Jersey, according to Reis Inc., a New York real-estate research firm. In downtown Miami, nearly 23,000 new units have been added since 2003, but only 13,000 are occupied, according to Condo Vultures LLC.
Other cities will be watching New York's effort closely as they deal with rising numbers of developments that are heading into foreclosure. Housing advocates say that several cities are considering similar programs using funds from a federal grant program designed to restore abandoned homes and complexes.
City officials said New York's effort would target neighborhoods that are being hard hit by the condo construction bust, including Harlem in upper Manhattan and New York's outer boroughs. The program is designed to speed along the completion of developments such as 23 Caton Place, a 107-unit luxury condo complex in Brooklyn that stands unfinished after the developer filed for bankruptcy and the lender moved to foreclose on the project.
"It's a blight and an eyesore," says Brad Lander, a senior fellow at the Pratt Center for Community Development who is running for city council. Residents met with city officials earlier this year to see if they might be able to recruit a developer to finish the project as a mixed-income housing development. "People here feel like their neighborhood was made worse by the boom and then by the bust," Mr. Lander says.
JULY 8, 2009, 9:26 P.M. ET
New York City Seeks to Turn Condos Into Affordable Housing
New York City announced Wednesday a pilot program to turn empty or stalled condominium developments into affordable housing, an idea consumer advocates have been pushing for years.
The program, which aims to convert as many as 400 units, is designed to provide grants to real-estate developers and lenders to subsidize the completion of developments if the owners agree to turn the building into rental units for middle-income families, which in New York means an income of up to $126,720 for a family of four.
The pilot project will be funded with $20 million of city funds, but could be expanded at a later date if initial results proved successful.
"It's not going to solve all of these problems by any means but it allows us to throw out a net and see what we pull in," said Marc Jahr, president of New York City's Housing Development Corporation. "We see an opportunity here to really capture affordability at a relatively inexpensive price to the public and to do it in a timely manner."
The move comes as cities nationwide are struggling to deal with the glut of empty and unfinished construction projects that are threatening to destabilize some communities. New York City has more than 140 stalled construction projects, said Marc Jahr, president of New York City's Housing Development Corporation.
Nationwide, about 51,000 condos were looking for buyers in May and more supply is on the way. Some 93,000 new condo units will be completed nationally this year, including more than 12,000 units in New York and northern New Jersey, according to Reis Inc., a New York real-estate research firm. In downtown Miami, nearly 23,000 new units have been added since 2003, but only 13,000 are occupied, according to Condo Vultures LLC.
Other cities will be watching New York's effort closely as they deal with rising numbers of developments that are heading into foreclosure. Housing advocates say that several cities are considering similar programs using funds from a federal grant program designed to restore abandoned homes and complexes.
City officials said New York's effort would target neighborhoods that are being hard hit by the condo construction bust, including Harlem in upper Manhattan and New York's outer boroughs. The program is designed to speed along the completion of developments such as 23 Caton Place, a 107-unit luxury condo complex in Brooklyn that stands unfinished after the developer filed for bankruptcy and the lender moved to foreclose on the project.
"It's a blight and an eyesore," says Brad Lander, a senior fellow at the Pratt Center for Community Development who is running for city council. Residents met with city officials earlier this year to see if they might be able to recruit a developer to finish the project as a mixed-income housing development. "People here feel like their neighborhood was made worse by the boom and then by the bust," Mr. Lander says.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Folks Losing Homes Dial 1-800; No One Answers
Loan Modifications
Folks losing homes dial 1-800; no one answers
updated 9:46 a.m. EDT, Thu April 16, 2009
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Megan Cavallari looks up from her stack of hundreds of faxes and documents, proof of her efforts to try to save her home from foreclosure. She's been on hold for over an hour, trying to get details for a loan modification. Finally, she's transferred to another line. But she doesn't get a human. Exasperated, she sighs. Once again, it's the "automated lady."
"Every report says the banks are helping, and everything on the radio says they're helping," Cavallari said. "You call and call and call; you're not getting a voice. You're getting a recording."
Cavallari, a music composer who does scores for films, is like hundreds of thousands of Americans going through foreclosure. But she says the process of trying to save her home -- and her $92,000 down payment -- has worn her out. She recently filed for bankruptcy and is moving out of her home with her young daughter.
The entire ordeal has been draining, especially trying to reach somebody at the bank. "You call them. After being on the phone with them, they send you to an automated lady. [Then] they send you to a Web site after you've been on the phone for an hour."
Banks and lenders say that they have been overwhelmed with calls and that they're doing all they can to help ease the situation for Americans in distress. Some calls get sent to the homeowners' Hope Now hot line of 1-888-995-HOPE, funded by the lending industry as a resource to provide free counseling and foreclosure prevention help.
"Servicers are working hard to triage those calls and help borrowers," said Faith Schwartz, Hope Now's executive director. "We are working hard on that capacity issue. There a millions of people who want help, but there are also millions of people who don't need help but might call in on other issues. So I think servicers are dealing with extraordinary call volume."
Nearly 250,000 homeowners received either mortgage modifications or repayment plans from their lenders in February, according to Hope Now. Schwartz added that 3 million more Americans are 60 days past due on their mortgages and need help.
"I always say it's never enough, but do understand there has been a lot done, and I think [banks] are working hard to do a better job of communicating with their customers -- and we're trying to help people do that," she said.
Critics charge that's not good enough when you're dealing with the loss of one's home and ruining a family's credit rating.
Yvonne Mariajimenez, an attorney with the nonprofit Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, says she deals every day with clients who have tried to reach their lenders. Sometimes, people hold for 20 minutes; in some cases, the wait is 2½ hours with nothing resolved in the end.
"Homeowners are calling. They're not getting calls back. The waiting time is ridiculous," she said. "They called 800 numbers that went into a black hole."
Her firm has worked with homeowners and banks to meet in person to try to negotiate modifications. "That has proven to be better, but even so, they're slow in reviewing loans and coming back with modification efforts.
"In the meantime, lenders are continuing to move forward with foreclosure," she said. "Even with thousands of people in foreclosure, we do not have anywhere near the advocates needed in order to deal with these homeowners on a one-to-one basis."
Maria Quesada is a single mother who faces losing her home. When her commissions started drying up in the insurance business, she says, she started calling her bank to work out a modified loan. Half a year later, she's still waiting.
She says it's a frustrating routine trying to reach anyone with the power to modify her loan. The responses, she says, are typically "call back in a week; call back in three days; call back, call back, call back."
"Even if you ask for a supervisor, they just won't let you talk to anybody else," Quesada said.
She's learned that her home is to be auctioned off. There's a lock box on her front door.
"I have to stay strong, but sometimes it's difficult when you're alone," she said.
Folks losing homes dial 1-800; no one answers
updated 9:46 a.m. EDT, Thu April 16, 2009
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Megan Cavallari looks up from her stack of hundreds of faxes and documents, proof of her efforts to try to save her home from foreclosure. She's been on hold for over an hour, trying to get details for a loan modification. Finally, she's transferred to another line. But she doesn't get a human. Exasperated, she sighs. Once again, it's the "automated lady."
"Every report says the banks are helping, and everything on the radio says they're helping," Cavallari said. "You call and call and call; you're not getting a voice. You're getting a recording."
Cavallari, a music composer who does scores for films, is like hundreds of thousands of Americans going through foreclosure. But she says the process of trying to save her home -- and her $92,000 down payment -- has worn her out. She recently filed for bankruptcy and is moving out of her home with her young daughter.
The entire ordeal has been draining, especially trying to reach somebody at the bank. "You call them. After being on the phone with them, they send you to an automated lady. [Then] they send you to a Web site after you've been on the phone for an hour."
Banks and lenders say that they have been overwhelmed with calls and that they're doing all they can to help ease the situation for Americans in distress. Some calls get sent to the homeowners' Hope Now hot line of 1-888-995-HOPE, funded by the lending industry as a resource to provide free counseling and foreclosure prevention help.
"Servicers are working hard to triage those calls and help borrowers," said Faith Schwartz, Hope Now's executive director. "We are working hard on that capacity issue. There a millions of people who want help, but there are also millions of people who don't need help but might call in on other issues. So I think servicers are dealing with extraordinary call volume."
Nearly 250,000 homeowners received either mortgage modifications or repayment plans from their lenders in February, according to Hope Now. Schwartz added that 3 million more Americans are 60 days past due on their mortgages and need help.
"I always say it's never enough, but do understand there has been a lot done, and I think [banks] are working hard to do a better job of communicating with their customers -- and we're trying to help people do that," she said.
Critics charge that's not good enough when you're dealing with the loss of one's home and ruining a family's credit rating.
Yvonne Mariajimenez, an attorney with the nonprofit Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, says she deals every day with clients who have tried to reach their lenders. Sometimes, people hold for 20 minutes; in some cases, the wait is 2½ hours with nothing resolved in the end.
"Homeowners are calling. They're not getting calls back. The waiting time is ridiculous," she said. "They called 800 numbers that went into a black hole."
Her firm has worked with homeowners and banks to meet in person to try to negotiate modifications. "That has proven to be better, but even so, they're slow in reviewing loans and coming back with modification efforts.
"In the meantime, lenders are continuing to move forward with foreclosure," she said. "Even with thousands of people in foreclosure, we do not have anywhere near the advocates needed in order to deal with these homeowners on a one-to-one basis."
Maria Quesada is a single mother who faces losing her home. When her commissions started drying up in the insurance business, she says, she started calling her bank to work out a modified loan. Half a year later, she's still waiting.
She says it's a frustrating routine trying to reach anyone with the power to modify her loan. The responses, she says, are typically "call back in a week; call back in three days; call back, call back, call back."
"Even if you ask for a supervisor, they just won't let you talk to anybody else," Quesada said.
She's learned that her home is to be auctioned off. There's a lock box on her front door.
"I have to stay strong, but sometimes it's difficult when you're alone," she said.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Running a Business is Like Mowing a Lawn
A few weeks ago on a beautiful sunny day, with gas can in hand, I pulled out my lawn mower with the intention of mowing my lawn for the first time this year. As I took off the gas cap, and began filling the tank of my Craftsman mower, I realized something was amiss. I noticed as the gas went into the tank...it continued through the other side, gushing out onto my weather beaten lawn! Now I am not a mechanic by any means, but I quickly came to the conclusion that this was not a good thing! Evidently today was not the day for me to mow the lawn! I immediately assessed the situation and determined that I would put the lawn mover back under the deck and revisit it another day.
As the weeks went by and my lawn reached new heights, I knew this was not something I could avoid nor handle on my own...I had to consult an expert, bring in a big gun. After a brief consultation with my 83 year old neighbor he directed me to the local small engine repair shop. With a smile on my face, I promptly manhandled my mower into the back of my SUV and quickly drove off in anticipation of resolving my issue.
One hour and forty three dollars later, I completed the task I had set out to do over one month ago. I had a sense of accomplishment and pride as I gazed out on my freshly mowed lawn.
In business I have also found that solutions are not always immediately apparent for every issue as it presents itself. Sometimes shelving a challenge provides you with an opportunity to determine your best course of action. Consulting an expert or hiring out what you yourself cannot do, makes it possible for you achieve your intended result.
May your grass always be green!
Cheers!
Colleen
As the weeks went by and my lawn reached new heights, I knew this was not something I could avoid nor handle on my own...I had to consult an expert, bring in a big gun. After a brief consultation with my 83 year old neighbor he directed me to the local small engine repair shop. With a smile on my face, I promptly manhandled my mower into the back of my SUV and quickly drove off in anticipation of resolving my issue.
One hour and forty three dollars later, I completed the task I had set out to do over one month ago. I had a sense of accomplishment and pride as I gazed out on my freshly mowed lawn.
In business I have also found that solutions are not always immediately apparent for every issue as it presents itself. Sometimes shelving a challenge provides you with an opportunity to determine your best course of action. Consulting an expert or hiring out what you yourself cannot do, makes it possible for you achieve your intended result.
May your grass always be green!
Cheers!
Colleen
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