Financial Hardship Program

[ChrisCoop]

I have been with Countrywide Home Loans since December 2007. Last November, my wife was on disability due to the birth of our second child. Since she wasn't working, it was hard for me to make the payments in full. We applied for the financial hardship program (workout assistance) in which we had to send them all of our financial information to see if we qualified. We did, and our payments were on hold for two months. I then received a letter in the mail that the hold on our account was up and that my account would be actived again. They also gave me a person to contact and a phone number. I called them the following day and got a message that they were on the phone. I was then shipped over to India to explain to them that I needed to speak to someone regarding this workout program we agreed to. They said they put a note in the system for the person to call me back. Now this was back in February, and I have still not received a response. I call every 10 days or so to get someone on the phone and the people over in India say they have notes in the system, their supervisor will contact these people, etc. I have not heard from anyone.

I also sent a few payments, but because it was a special program, it had to be sent to the Workout Department in Plano, TX instead of the Dallas, TX office. I sent three money orders to them. The first one was cashed and applied to my account. The next two, which I sent in the same envelope, were never applied to my account. After calling customer service, they claim that they never received it. I now have to fill out a form at the post office for a missing money order, which can take anywhere from 30-90 days. Ridiculous.

I have called my local branch, and they tell me there is nothing they can do, but to call the home retention team. I called them yesterday, again, and I got put back to customer service because all of their lines were busy. They told me to call back today, which I am about to do. I just want answers on what the heck is going on with my mortgage.

I feel like I am getting the runaround from this company. I am sure they are busy, like everyone else who is working, but I am worried that they will come knocking on my door soon and foreclose my house, which is the LAST thing I want done. The people in India say that they can't do that, but I don't believe it.

Has anyone else had this issue? Is there any advice that can be given? I would appreciate any feedback anyone has. Thanks.

[Moe Bedard]

Hi Chris,


Welcome to the forum and thank you for joining.................

Most members have given up dealing with CW and are going through NACA instead for their modifications.............if this is the only property that you own..........you may want to try that route instead. NACA is a HUD approved counseling agency and the services for their Home Save modification are free...........we have had many successes from members using NACA instead..............and they are low, fixed rate modifications.
Here is the link for you to look over the info............
https://www.naca.com/refinance/refinanceTenStep.jsp

[ChrisCoop]

Thanks ***. I actually got a hold of someone who was very helpful and got me to the right person. I talked to them and they needed my updated financials, which I provided to them today. I need to fax them some more information tomorrow, and then they will go through the process of trying to workout a more reasonable payment. The people I spoke with were surprisingly polite and helpful (I've read some posts that people were rude and nasty). I'll keep the NACA in mind, but I'm going to continue to see what I can work with in regards to Countrywide. Hopefully this can get taken care of and I can start making my regular payments.

[hoping4change]

Originally Posted by ChrisCoop

Thanks ***. I actually got a hold of someone who was very helpful and got me to the right person. I talked to them and they needed my updated financials, which I provided to them today. I need to fax them some more information tomorrow, and then they will go through the process of trying to workout a more reasonable payment. The people I spoke with were surprisingly polite and helpful (I've read some posts that people were rude and nasty). I'll keep the NACA in mind, but I'm going to continue to see what I can work with in regards to Countrywide. Hopefully this can get taken care of and I can start making my regular payments.

Just don't hold your breath. Many people on this board, including myself, never got a response from CW which is why they went with NACA. I applied for mod with CW back in Nov/08 when I was 60 days behind and as of March 09 had not heard back despite calling every week for updates. That is when I went with NACA. Now I am going on 7 months behind. CW was nice to me too in the beginning. It is now that I am flagged as NACA that they became nasty and refuse to talk to me. If you get a BofA customer service rep though they are nice. Good luck to you!

[kateistired]

It IS possible to get a mod through CW. You will have to hang in there and be patient and persistent, but it can be done. I have noticed a huge change in their responsiveness to my account in the last month (since they changed to BOA). You can also ask them what status your home is in. I was 12 months behind, and never went to foreclosure. They will be able to tell you if you are in it or not. We got our modification papers a few weeks ago, and our online account is now showing approved and completed.

Hang in there. I never went with NACA, either. I think they are a great organization, but I was afraid of muddying the waters with to many mods going on at once