[garyys]

Rev Carrie-

Thanks for continuing to post daily updates, its helping me tremendously. I like seeing someone making some progress! Please don’t take my post out of context, I am not trying to bash you, or make you look bad. I am just trying to clarify some points that I understood differently from my research. If anything I will probably make myself look bad!

“It is NOT necessarily FHA leanders who are getting involved here. In fact most of them are not. There are 23 pages worth of companies who ARE doing this TYPE of FHA loan with the H4H owner's bill. They are handling different states or sections of the country more as a "speciality" rather than all FHA lenders doing it.”

From www.fha.gov-

“I contacted my lender and they are not interested in participating in this program. Can I apply with HUD?

HUD/FHA does not accept loan applications or lend money directly. Contact your existing lender or another FHA-approved lender to see if they are participating in the H4H program. Like all FHA programs, you can only apply through a participating lender. You may also wish to contact a HUD-approved housing counselor to learn more about your options. HOPE for Homeowners is a voluntary program for both borrowers and existing lenders. In order to complete a HOPE for Homeowners loan, however, your lender must agree to accept the proceeds of the new loan as payment in full. For a list of participating lenders and counselors please go to www.fha.gov.”

This tells me they have to be a FHA approved lender? Right, not all FHA lenders are participating in the program, but they do have to be FHA approved lenders. The lenders I have talked to are off of that 23 page list, and they are not able to currently able to complete the H4H loan (even if they may want to). They have told me that investors are not buying these loans. It is very possible that you have found one of the few that are direct lenders (as far as I understand, using their own money or direct investor money), not wholesale lenders (who have to sell the loan once they make it). That’s why I asked who the lender is, they apparently have experience dealing with Aurora and they seem to be one of the few actually processing these loans. The approved lenders are trying to do them in states that they are licensed to lend in, I have not found anything that has divided them otherwise (the list of states to the right of the lender name on the 23 pages is just the states where they are licensed to do these loans)?

See article-
http://www.housingwire.com/2008/11/04/mid-tier-lenders-shut-out-of-hope-for-homeowners-sources-say/

“We don't know for sure yet who the actual owner of my cousin's loan is but whatever compnay it is, they are willing to let Aurora negotiate the out come. The loan had been sold at least four times and maybe more and we suspect it ended up with Fannie Mae which of course is the Feds now. This has apparently ended up a Fed bailout and the Feds are the owners in this case.”

I take it that this assumption is made because congress is telling those that were bailed out to work with the program and modifications? Did Aurora tell them it had been sold 4 times?

“The H4H requires $350 up front of which $250 is returned at the closing according to the agent she is working with. This is to make sure the time isn't spent on this process only to for people who are not serious about it, to bak out. The $100 left is for filing fees.”

I could not see anyone who is qualified for this, not being serious about it. I would be very cautious about this, if the deal falls through do they get their $$ back? If I were asked to do this I would call FHA and see if this is acceptable, or even legal. A lender is asking someone who can’t afford their mortgage for $350? Sounds like they found a way to cover some of there time if Aurora decides not to play ball (like I suspect a lot of lenders will be hesitant to do). This is just my opinion. The original H4H terms stated that people seeking H4H loans would only pay upfront for an FHA appraisal of the property. That wording is now gone, so maybe this is something the loan originators negotiated with FHA?

“The apraisal is about 50-60 thousand dollars "over valued" by the Aurora apraiser according to apraisals in the neighborhood at the same time and now too. The papers were signed while standing at the kitchen cabinet of an "agent" in the agent's home while the agent was babysitting SEVEN youngesters! The whole thing was the "back alley" things movies are made of.”

I don’t doubt the predatory loan, I’m in a similar boat, a lot of people are. It will work as a good leverage point. Was the appraisal done at the time of purchase, or a refi? And the second part, low overhead! Sounds like good service (meeting at home, not necessarily the loan) making adjustments to get the loan processed and through on time. Better than waiting till the next day and not having it close on time!

“One thing to remember, so I've found out, is these employees on the other end of the phone are just that, employees, and not the investors themselves who probably never answer their own phones. These employees can lose their jobs through layoffs and some have already been annouced through the news media in various organizations. They are facing uncertainity the same as those out here are.”

“Respect and lack of emotionalism is what is needed. I realize this is difficult to do when those out here on this end are so threatened with winter and the holiday seasons with all of their expectations coming too as well as a roof over your head.”

Many of these people are in the same boat as us. My theory, treat people like people until they give you a reason not to. I am always calm when I talk to them.

“I know it may seem far fetched by I treated our own Mod as a game of Clue. I kept crossing off things that didn't work until I found something that did work.”

That’s why I keep asking you questions, and hope you keep replying. Thanks again, and hopefully I will be able to start my own H4H thread soon!

Gary