Approved Loan Modification Attorneys

We recognize that sometimes, foreclosure defense is simply the only option; sometimes, no matter how hard we try or what we do, we simply need professional, attorney help. We’re putting together a list of Attorneys by State (see the map below), and we need your help!

There has been a good deal of coverage of the case for Attorney Representation, notably among the most respected industry professionals; here are a couple of posts that may help in your decision, however please utilize Modification Zoom as your first stop for free loan modification help while reading these articles:

Every single Attorney on this map has been as thoroughly interviewed by Modification Zoom as possible within the limits of client confidentiality and Attorney – client privilege; legally as a consumer advocacy group we are not able to physically investigate each and every file, or request even the first name of an Attorney’s client without the client’s express and written authorization, however, we do interview each and every employee of the law firm in question, from the Principal & Partners all the way down to the paralegals, secretaries and processors. Additionally we do contact clients that have expressly agreed to be contacted by us, and have provided a testimonial either for or against the firm in question.

Becoming Certified by Modification Zoom has a huge number of benefits, most notably receiving homeowner referrals for the State that you practice law in; Modification Zoom is contacted by thousands of homeowners monthly who have attempted loan modifications on their own, and truly need the guidance and experience of an ethical Loss Mitigation Attorney.

The benefits are based upon the level at which you are ranked by our Accreditation team, after interviews of your employees and review of client testimonials. Receiving a Gold, Silver, or Bronze Accreditation provides a level of ethos for loss mitigation professionals on par with BBB or McAfee Safe Accreditations for small businesses.

The Modification Zoom Approval Seal is rapidly becoming recognized throughout the loss mitigation industry as the standard that Legal Groups strive to achieve; becoming a member of this exclusive organization can be a tough process, and you may have to make a few changes to become approved. Here are the Benefits of receiving certification:

Receive Referrals from Modification Zoom for the State the you Practice inAbility to display the Modification Zoom Accreditation SealA featured profile detailing your Company on Modification ZoomYour own featured blog here on Modification ZoomAdvertisements on the Modification Zoom homepage and in the sidebar areasPowerful links to your Company WebsiteHighlight of your name as a professional when you interact with homeowners on this websiteWe write time to time for Zillow, GeekEstate, Scottsman Guide, and a number of other major mortgage industry publications, and have also contributed to ABC and content on Associated Press; when we need a quote or expert opinion, we ask our approved attorney’s first!

Membership does entail a small quarterly fee to cover the cost of interview as well as proper exposure for your company through the Modification Zoom network to ensure the full education of homeowners from your State that will connect with you, and to ensure that they have attempted all means of modifying on their own for free.

To Attorney Companies wishing to gain Modification Zoom accreditation: We offer three levels of certification, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, as determined by telephone interviews with all employees of the firm as well as reviews of client testimonials from those of your clients that express written and documented authorization to be contacted by Modification Zoom.

If you are a loan modification attorney intent on receiving loan modification certification, feel free to contact us directly at (202) 580-0637, or send an e-mail to Justin Bartlett entitled “Loan Modification Attorney Certification”. Accreditation is updated on a quarterly basis, with re-interview of employees, as well as a mandatory quarterly webinar for all approved Attorney Groups which requires the online presence of at least one authorized representative of your firm.

For homeowners intent on receiving Attorney help, we hope this proves to be the very best resource available. There are a huge number of scam modification companies out there that prey upon homeowners in need. This is absolutely not right, and we need to work together to crack down on these bad companies.

The companies that have made the approval list, and have received Modification Zoom’s endorsement have been diligently inteviewed by our staff. Each attorney groups is assigned only ONE state, the state that they are licensed to practice law in, unless they are 1) licensed to practice in multiple states and 2) are large enough to provide hands-on attention to homeowners from multiple states; What good is a loan modification attorney from New York going to do for you if you live in California? They will not be able to go to court for you if need be and represent you against your lender.

Modification Zoom will be undergoing an extensive face-lift over the duration of the next month to become the penultimate free homeowner loan modification resource, with information on how to DIY loan modification for free.

Additionally, we will be allowing users to create profiles, join groups, add each other as friends, chat, post in forums, and more, and we thank all of the wonderful feedback and support that we have received from visitors just like yourself.

In closing, this is a collaborative effort to make the loss mitigation world smaller and connect homeowners with good, ethical legal representation. We need everyone’s help. If you are a homeowner that has engaged a loan modification group previously, good or bad, we need your feedback, so leave a comment below telling us about your experience! If you are an attorney, feel free to post a link to your website via comment below, and write a little bit about your firm!

View the original article here

Carrington Mortgage Services – New Century – Loan Modification

Let me start by saying if your mortgage lender is Carrington, you may be facing an uphill battle in getting them to modify your loan. Loan modification requests have often been arbitrarily declined in the past, and there exists a horrific track record of not diligently helping homeowners that qualify for assistance, although lately Carrington has shown some improvement in helping homeowners that are facing financial hardship.

A good deal of the loans currently held by Carrington Mortgage Services actually were originate by New Century, a loan servicer notorious for originating high interest rate subprime mortgages that set borrowers up for financial failure 2 or 5 years in the future.

Bruce Rose, CEO of Carrington Mortgage Services

The amount of dirt on Carrington Mortgage Services goes back years; here’s a previous entry I wrote about Carrington: Carrington Mortgage Loan Modification Epic Fail. Recently, Bruce Rose, CEO of Carrington was listed with NACA as one of their ten most wanted financial predators, and they have faced a number of lawsuits for unfair and deceptive business practices.

Rather than focusing on the bad however, let’s focus on the positive, and why you most likely are here; Let’s talk about how you can get a loan modification from Carrington.

Carrington participates in Obama’s Making Home Affordable Program. How does this help you? Well, HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program) has set guidelines that make it easier for homeowners like yourself to get a loan modification that will allow you to afford your monthly mortgage payments.

We’ll get back to Making Home Affordable and qualification for this program in a minute. First things first, if you’re not familiar with what a loan modification is or the general process for getting one, I suggest you take a look at the Loan Modification Q&A here.

Getting a mortgage modification can help you in so many ways, and if you manage to wrestle a good loan workout from Carrington, you will probably reap the benefits of saving hundreds if not thousands of dollars per month as a result of lowering your monthly payments, interest rate, and possibly even the amount that you owe on your mortgage.

If you want to take the guesswork out of the loan modification process, and are having trouble getting a Carrington loan modification, complete the contact form to the right; we’ll call you immediately and coach you.

Prior to calling Carrington, which can be reached directly at either (800) 790-9502 or (877) 206-9904, be sure that you put together a hardship letter, as well as a detailed and complete list of all income, assets, and expenses. Take a look at the Making Home Affordable Guidelines here prior to submitting your package and make sure that you qualify.

Often, homeowners contact us that have already submitted financial information to their lender that does not qualify them for a loan modification, which makes it that much harder for us to qualify a homeowner that has already been declined.

When you are absolutely positive that you qualify for a loan modification and have completed your hardship letter and financial prospectus, begin gathering supporting documentation to reinforce your case: You will need a copy of 2 years W-2’s, 2 years tax returns, the last 2 months paystubs, 3 months bank statements, a the most recent copy of your mortgage statement or coupon.

Eventually these documents will be reviewed by a Loss Mitigation Specialist and / or Negotiator at Carrington, who will give a yea or nay on your loan modification request. It is very important to advocate for yourself, and negotiate the very best terms possible on your loan modification.

I hope this helps; if you are in need of professional assistance, any of us here at Modification Zoom would be more than happy to help you. More information on Carrington is posted here regularly so check back often, or subscribe to our rss feed for news and updates!

View the original article here

Despite Presence of REO Homes for Sale, Cities in Texas Get Thumbs Up

Texas has not been spared from the housing market crisis, with foreclosures and REO homes for sale also numbering in the thousands in most cities of the state. However, some real estate market analysts believe that certain areas of the state are ideal for real estate investors despite the ongoing downturn in the housing industry.

According to Local Market Monitor (LMM), the cities of McAllen and Austin in Texas are two of a handful of areas that can be considered good bets for real property investors. Despite the impact of foreclosures on most areas of the state, including foreclosed homes in San Antonio, TX, these two cities topped the list of housing markets that can provide potential benefits to property investors.

For those who wish to invest in foreclosed homes in Texas and existing dwellings and other types of real estate, Austin and McAllen offer great opportunities since they are considered as two of the steadiest property markets around. LMM stated that the two metro areas did not suffer from drastic price changes like other areas did during the period 2001-2006.

Because of the relatively steady condition of these markets, the cities were able to avoid the market bust that affected majority of metro areas in the U.S., particularly when foreclosed properties and REO homes for sale started pouring into the residential market. The areas are also supported by a strong job mix that leans toward industries like education and government.

LMM explains that despite the presence of significant foreclosed property listings, areas with a high percentage of employment in these two sectors are usually stable. The research firm also stated that cities and counties that rely heavily on industries like finance and construction are the ones most likely to have suffered from the housing market crisis.

The real estate-focused firm also revealed that the ranking where Austin and McAllen lead the way is focused more on regions that have the highest chances of rebounding and have the biggest tendency to mount a property price appreciation. So, despite the continuous presence of foreclosed houses and REO homes for sale, the cities of McAllen and Austin are probably the best bets for real estate investors right now.

View the original article here

Loan Modification Guidelines

There are a plethora of Loan Modification Guidelines out there for a number of lender and government programs that exist to help homeowners lower their mortgage payments and stop foreclosure.  Most likely, you’re looking for information on how to get a loan modification and want to make sure that you qualify.

We’re going to take a look at the guidelines for one of the major Loan Modification Programs, Making Home Affordable.  Making Home Affordable has both a refinance side and a loan modification side, however, it seems that more homeowners can benefit from modifying their mortgages.  This program is also known as the Treasury Loan Modification Program, or the Obama Plan.

Qualification right off the bat is contingent on a couple of key factors.  First, your home needs to be your primary and only residence.  This means that at the time of your application, the home that you are having trouble making payments on has to be the only home that you own.

Second, the amount that you owe on your mortgage needs to be less than or equal to $729,750.  Seems like an arbitrary number, right?  The fact of the matter is that this Government Initiative exists to help homeowners that have what is termed “Conventional” mortgages, rather than those that own huge mansions that have been financed though “Jumbo” loans.

Thirdly, you need to have had your mortgage for at least one year.  Regardless of how long you’ve owned your home, it’s not entirely fair for you to qualify under the loan modification guidelines if you’ve recently refinanced and pulled all the equity out of your home, only to find that you can no longer afford the payments.

The final qualification is whether or not reducing your housing payment to 31% of your gross monthly income would put you in a better financial situation, solve the hardship you are experiencing, and help you avoid foreclosure.

To determine the payment that you would qualify for under Making Home Affordable or HAMP guidelines, merely multiply the amount that you make each month before taxes by .31.

If you are self-employed, take an average of your last 3 months income after expenses and multiply that number by .31.  The product that you have is what is commonly referred to as your “affordable housing payment”.

From here, you need to determine what interest rate you need to have to qualify for your affordable housing payment, and make sure that the interest rate you are requesting is within the program parameters.

To do this, we need to work backwards.  Break down your taxes and insurance into monthly figures and subtract the amount that you pay per month from your “affordable housing payment”.  This will be your new “P&I” (Principal & Interest) payment.

Use a mortgage calculator and put in your current loan amount, 30 year term, and to start, a 5.5% interest rate.  Calculate the monthly payment and check if this is the same as your Affordable Principal & Interest payment.  If it isn’t, decrease the interest rate by .125% (5.375%) and calculate again.

Continue decreasing the interest rate by eights (.125) until you reach the affordable payment you need.  If you reach 2% on a 30 year term and the mortgage payment is too high, change the number of years to 40 years and start over.

Keep in mind that a lower interest rate and longer loan term will lower your payment more, however, the more you decrease the rate the less likely your lender is to convert your Trial Loan Modification to a Permanent Loan Modification.

This is the bulk of the qualification for the Treasury Loan Modification Program.  To complete the qualification, create a financial prospectus by drawing up a detailed list of all income, expenses and assets.

Determine your bottom line net cashflow by subtracting your total current bills from the amount that you take home each month (net income) after taxes.  This should be a negative number.

Be sure that after the modification your proposed net cashflow is a positive number.  To determine your proposed net cashflow, subtract your proposed expenses (the same expenses as before, but with your “affordable” payment instead of the amount you pay on your mortgage now) from your net income.  This should now be a positive number.

So, if you are minus $250 currently in terms of net cashflow, and under the loan modification guidelines, you are supposed to save $500 though your affordable payment, you should end up with positive $250 cashflow proposed.

I understand this can be a little bit confusing, and this is truly just the beginnings of getting qualified for a loan modification under HAMP.  But this will get you into a Trial Modification.  If you’re a homeowner in need of financial assistance and you’re worried about losing your home, we can get a loan modification done for you.

Take a look through ModificationZoom.com; you’ll find all the information that you need to get a loan modification on your own, however, if you still believe that you need help, contact us using the contact form on the right.  There’s a reason why our clients call us the best loan modification company.

View the original article here

Freddie Mac Homes for Sale and Foreclosure Owners Warned of Fake Rescue

Police officers from Morgan Hill in California have warned homeowners of foreclosed properties, including Freddie Mac homes for sale, to be wary of companies pretending to offer foreclosure rescue services and those that operate lease back schemes. Such practices are reportedly up in the area.

With the number of foreclosed homes in San Jose, CA and in other areas of the state recording some of the highest levels all over the U.S., local authorities stated that it is not surprising that fraudulent companies and individuals have found the state and its cities a good place to operate.

According to authorities, the companies are trying to convince owners of foreclosed homes in California that they can get their properties back even when they are already foreclosed and eviction notice has been issued. The firms reportedly use fake deeds and documents to convince homeowners that they can return to their houses even though a court has already ordered the eviction.

Last August, the state's Office of the Attorney General has announced that a judgment worth $1.1 million has been issued against a state lawyer who operates a fraudulent foreclosure scheme, with owners of foreclosed Freddie Mac homes for sale and other foreclosed properties as primary targets.

The AG also stated in a press release that owners of properties under lists of foreclosure homes for sale who have been approached by these companies and individuals can file a formal complaint at the State Bar or with state government agencies. A Web site has also been launched by the AG office to educate homeowners and borrowers about the fraudulent operations.

The site can also be used by borrowers to check out whether a company or an individual who offers them foreclosure rescue services is legitimate or not. For those companies and people who operate legally and have followed state law regarding foreclosure rescues, their names can be verified through the site.

Officials have also revealed that companies and individuals who offer rescue and counseling services to owners of foreclosed properties, including foreclosed Freddie Mac homes for sale, are required to register with the AG office and post a bond worth at least $100,000. Asking for up front fees from homeowners is also deemed illegal under state laws.

View the original article here

Citi Bank Loan Modification

Getting a loan modification from Citi Bank can be a time consuming effort, however we’re going to simplify the process through a step by step breakdown of exactly what you need to do.

First, however, a little background on Citi Mortgage and loan modification programs.  A loan modification is an agreement between borrower and lender (Citi Bank) to reduce the monthly payments of the borrower to an affordable amount, allowing the borrower to keep their home, and the lender to avoid the high cost of foreclosure.

Citi is quite motivated to modify your mortgage for two reasons, first and foremost, through modification they can avoid losing significant money on selling your home as a foreclosure.  Second, a good deal of pressure has been placed on Citi Mortgage recently by the Treasury Department, Congress, and the Obama Administration to help more homeowners under the Making Home Affordable Program.

Citi Bank does participate in the Making Home Affordable program, a program designed to help homeowners reduce their monthly payments to 31% of their gross income; in depth program guidelines and help on qualification for the Treasury Loan Modification Program can be found here.

Citi has a separate department, the Office of Homeownership Preservation, dedicated to helping homeowners modify their mortgages.  Citi’s stance on outside help is that homeowners do not need professional or Attorney guidance in getting their mortgages modified.  We beg to differ.

As of November, 2009, Citi had 100,126 homeowners in Trial Loan Modifications, however, had only granted 271 permanent loan modifications.  This is a less than 1% Permanent Modification Success rate, and absolutely horrible.

Compare this with the majority of Attorney Groups, most all of which lay claim to a 90% + success rate on loan modifications for their clients.

Regardless of whether or not you need professional help, the first step in getting a loan modification from Citi Mortgage is to write a hardship letter.

Your hardship letter is your opportunity to tell Citi exactly what the financial hardship is that you are experiencing, as well as express your desire to find a plausible solution that is both in your and Citi’s best interest.

Your hardship letter should include your name, address and contact information, and loan number, as well as your purpose in contacting Citi’s Loss Mitigation Department; would you like to save your home through a loan modification, or would you rather sell it is a short-sale?  In your hardship letter you should state clearly the reason for your financial difficulty, and state whether this is a permanent or short term hardship.  Your hardship letter should be about one page typed, clear, concise, and to the point.

When you have completed your hardship letter, begin gathering the required documentation for a Citi Bank loan modification, which consists of W-2s, Paystubs, Tax Returns, and 2 months of bank statements.  If your taxes and insurance are not escrowed into your monthly mortgage payments, you will need to document those figures, and if you are self-employed you will need to prepare a 3 month Profit and Loss statement as well.

Citi’s Office of Homeownership Preservation can be reached via phone at (866) 915-8417 Monday – Thurdsay, 6am-6pm PST and on Fridays 6am-3pm PST, however we urge you  to speak to an unbiased Attorney to advise you of your legal rights prior to contacting Citi to ensure they offer you the help you are entitled to and qualify for.  Additionally, it’s important and helpful to speak with a HUD Counselor regarding your mortgage; HUD can be reached at (800) 569-4287.  You will need to fill out the following form to submit to Citi’s Office of Homeownership Preservation: http://www.citigroup.com/citi/citizen/community/homeownershippreservation/hardshp_pckg.pdf.

If your unsure still about the Citi Loan Modification Process, here’s another article that may clear up questions: Citi Mortgage Loan Modification.  Additionally, you can complete the contact form on any page of this website, even if its just to get advice about your financial situation, and we will contact you via phone immediately.

View the original article here

Why Invest In Townhouse Homes

Townhouse homes are structures that are attached to other unit or units in a row. Oftentimes, they are built and integrated with other dwellings that form multi-unit houses such as duplexes or triplexes. Others have several units within a single structure. The main difference between a townhouse and a condo is the ownership of the land on which the structure is built. When you buy a townhouse, you also buy the land along with the unit. This is not so in a condominium where only the possession of the unit is transferred to you. Townhouses are increasingly becoming popular due to their potential as an investment piece.

The Advantages of Buying Townhouses

Townhouse homes come in very affordable prices than traditionally-sized houses. While they may not be as spacious as other regular-sized homes, they are nevertheless easier to maintain and do not demand large overhead for repairs. They are also known for having exterior areas that are very easy to manage and their interiors are well-designed to maximize every corner and space.

Unlike in condominiums, living in townhouses afford you greater privacy since you do not have to worry about next-room neighbors living on both sides of your unit or above and below you. While you may share a wall with a neighbor, this is still much better than sharing the entire building along with many other people and families.

One of the greatest advantages of investing in townhouse homes is that they are extremely functional. These spaces were designed to house the needs of every member of your family. This is why you will find a lot of built-in spaces that do not only conserve what little space you have but also promote ease in your mobility around the house.

Aside from those already mentioned, townhouses are also perfect for families since they are strategically located in friendly communities and neighborhoods. Access to business centers and other amenities is also easy as these facilities could be found just about anywhere near the units. You can also take advantage of shared privileges with your neighbors such as a pool, garden and lawns.

In general, it is not difficult to see why many people prefer buying townhouse homes over other types of properties. If you are business-minded, you can actually even take advantage of their huge potential for a rentals business. With the right marketing skills and strategies and a little amount of fixing around the unit, you can succeed in attracting many interested house renters.

View the original article here