Single, unemployed homeowner in Florida?

[LadyDoveFL]

During the local news broadcast today, it was mentioned that the Making Homes Affordable Program had only helped about 15% of eligible homeowners (ABC News). It’s not just the banks! The State of Florida’s Agency for Workforce Initiative (i.e., the unemployment agency) has also stymied help!!!

I am one of those struggling homeowners that should be eligible for assistance under the HAMP (Home Affordability Modification Program) plan; I am single (live by myself) and my job was eliminated earlier this year. Oh, yeah, I’m currently “current” on my mortgage loans (but that just can’t last for much longer as I'm hemorraging $$ from what little savings I have to cover my bills). And I have a very decent FICO (at least for now)…

The investor on my first loan is Freddie Mac; being unemployed, I should qualify for the “imminent default” aspect of the HAMP program. The main requirement for “imminent default” is to provide verifiable proof of at least NINE MONTHS of future income – unemployment benefits are acceptable.

With Florida’s unemployment numbers being above the national average, there are several extensions available to those of us receiving unemployment payments. I am currently about 4 months into the initial 6 months of benefits, but should have 7 to 9 months of extended benefits available to me after the initial claim is used up.

Sounds like a no-brainer to qualify for the HAMP program (which would reduce my first loan from $960 monthly to under $400 – allowing me to keep my home with the $1200 monthly unemployment payments until I can land a new job)…

No-brainer? WRONG!!! AWI WILL NOT RELEASE ANY DOCUMENTATION STATING THAT A RECIPIENT HAS MORE THAN THE INITIAL SIX MONTHS of benefits!!! They won’t even document that the claimant has potentially X amount of months of extended benefits available!!!


I’ve been in contact with my state senators office; the gentleman that I talked to has a contact at AWI who was able to tell him that last week that I had 44 weeks of benefits (initial and extended) left to claim – we’re talking 11 months’ worth, more than enough for the 9 months requirement for HAMP. However, that AWI contact reiterated that I couldn’t get a document from AWI with that information!!!

I did manage to get through last week (07/27/2009) to a Customer Rep at the AWI office (after being stuck in automated phone system limbo for 45 minutes); again, I was told that AWI “can’t guarantee that the benefits will be available”! Hence, the justification for no documentation beyond the initial 6 months’ claim.

This morning, I once again went back to the Loss Mitigation department of my lender; I explained the situation with AWI. I asked her what others in my situation in Florida had done to get approval; she mentioned that they had spousal income to work with… Well, I’m divorced, single, no kids… I stated “Nobody in Florida who is single, unemployed has been able to get a modification under the HAMP Program”?!?! She agreed!!!

WHAT?!?! Because of AWI’s refusal to document the future benefits that are available, I could lose my house!!!

WHO do I have to go to to get to the bottom of this? Not just for me, but for others in a similar situation (single, unemployed, underwater and struggling to stay current on our debt)…

I just can’t do it much longer – staying current… When I have no choice but to miss payments because what little is left of my savings is gone, my credit will take a big hit… And to insult to injury, with the tight job market, many employers are doing background credit checks on potential employees…

I've spent hours on my cell phone (no landline), talking to my State Senator's office, my US Congressman's office, even called the hotline to the Governor (which netted me a phone call from a supervisor at AWI only to be told that they couldn't give out any type of verification regarding remaining benefits)... I even sent an email to one of our local news stations asking for their assistance (haven't heard back from them)... Even Freddie Mac wasn't much help, suggesting that I talk to a local Housing & Counseling agency (why? I've already been in contact with my lender's loan mod negotiator...)

ARGGGGHHHH!!!! <* primal scream *>

[ankush76]

LadyDove, I know the frustration as a I am in the same boat. I have been trying to get loanmod from my bank but due to the fact that I am unemployed and only receiving UI, I'm not eligible for or they are not entertaining that thought. All they offer if forebarance (which we all know is a bad option). I rater try to rent my house before take the forebarance!!!

anyways, i think the bigger plan is not to do the loan modification but to push for the "right to rent" option meaning surrneder your ownership to the bank/govt and rent your own house from them. google "right to rent"

[Marshall Rosenbach Esq.]

Were you actually denied the modification? Did they tell you that you did not qualify under the MHA program? Did you find out whether you could be considered under other available programs? Or just considered as a basic modification outside of the MHA program?

[LadyDoveFL]

Thank you for your response.

Yes, I was denied under the HAMP plan, which is the only loan mod program available for the unemployed (AND current on their payments)... Wachovia claims that they "cannot qualify me because the unemployment letter that I sent to them (the Florida Wage & Transcript Determination document received after submitting my initial request for unemployment benefits) states that benefits are only good for 26 weeks (i.e., 6 months)" and the HAMP program requires 9 months of benefits." At the time of the mod rejection, I only had about 2-3 months left (out of 6 months) on my initial claim.

Wachovia wants "a letter stating that unemployment benefits are good for 9 months FROM THE DAY THAT I WAS REJECTED (which really stinks if I had been several months into collecting benefits at the time of my initial request for a loan mod)!

I called AWI (which is an ordeal in itself getting thru) to request that letter I was told that if you are in your initial 6 month claim, they will not send out any documentation stating how much (or how many weeks) of extended benefits are available! Their rationale is that:

1. you might find a job before then (yeah, right, in one of the highest unemployment rates in Florida history, where even state and city governments are laying off workers due to budget shortfalls)
2. you might not qualify for extended benefits (something about one's initial claim running out before or after a specific day in September 2009 -- whatever the date is, I qualify for the extended benefits).

My state senator's office has a contact at AWI who was able to tell them that I had 44 weeks of benefits, initial and extended, available to me (I'm now down to 41 weeks). Forty-one weeks is just over 10 months...

The loan rep at Wachovia's Loss Mitigation told me that unemployed customers in Florida who got loan mods under the HAMP program were able to do so because they were able to use spousal income for the 9 months requirement... I'm no lawyer, but it sounds to me that the class of single, unemployed residents in Florida who should be eligible under HAMP are being discriminated against!


UPDATE:
My state senator's office reached out to their contact at AWI; the contact talked to the AWI legal department and a letter was sent to my senator's office detailing the requested information in terms of dollar amounts (not weeks) available. Since the Wage Transcript stated that weekly benefits are $275, doing the math based on the new letter results in 10.x months of benefits available. I received a copy of the letter yesterday and immediately faxed it to my lender. Keeping my fingers crossed that this will be acceptable.

But I wonder about others in my predicament? How will the word get out to them (provided that this latest letter is accepted by my lender)?

[LadyDoveFL]

UPDATE!!!

Well, I just got off the phone with Wachovia's Loss Mitigation department yet again. They accepted the letter that the Florida Senator's office got from AWI (Florida's unemployment office) stating how much funds were available to me; HOWEVER, my request for a modification under the HAMP plan was again denied -- this time due to INSUFFICIENT INCOME!!! Excuse me?!?! If the reduced amount is insufficient, how-the-heck do they think I'm gonna make it on the full loan payment?!?!

Oh, they can put me on a forbearance plan: 6 months at half-payments (which is almost twice what the reduced amount would be) or 3 months of no payments... he's telling me that I should have found a job by then... EXCUSE ME?!?! I know people who are better at networking than I am, have more experience than I do and have been looking for months longer! Florida has above the national average unemployment rate and the Tampa Bay area is one of the highest in the state... In 5 months, I've only seen a handful of jobs that I qualify for and most of those I haven't heard back from...

And with the forebearance, they'll happily tack the skipped payments on to the end of the loan...

IT'S SO DANGED FRUSTRATING!!! Up until now, I've always been current on my loans. I started a year ago looking for some means of reducing my payments through one of the various government programs available for struggling homeowners. GOT NOWHERE because I was current and had a job... Now I need help and I'm still getting NOWHERE because I'm current!!!

Well, I can only afford to make one more payment, then I'm pretty much tapped out with the savings account... If they would have reduced the payments to 31% of my unemployment benefits, I could have ridden out the jobless situation... but NOOOOOO! We're sorry, we can't help you!!! No spousal income, you're not worth our benevolence... Nevermind that we're taking billions from the government to help struggling homeowners...

Sheesh! And to add insult to injury, this morning, my local Wachovia office called to ask if I'd be interested in opening an interest-bearing checking account with them!?!? Can you believe that?