Miami Beach Condo our first home....

[Hurricane]

We bought our first condo in Miami Beach in march 2007.

we payed 215,000. and now after the housing market plummet, figure our condo is valued at 120,000.

Our loan is Fixed 30 year @ 6.75%.

In addition to being upside-down, we have been late on payments sense October, and currently owe December & January.

(with all the financial crisis, I have clients who haven't payed me in months)

I received a letter from a lawyer today that said public record indicates our property may be in the process of being foreclosed.

Is there some type of loan modification that will reduce the amount we owe to the current value of our property?

What should our first step be?

Thanks for any input.

[Moe Bedard]

Hi Hurricane,


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


Who is the servicer of the loan?
Have you contacted them and asked them if the investor on the loan is willing to do this?

[Hurricane]

AHMSI (American Home) is the servicing co., no I havn't contacted anyone yet... wanted to get a little more educated on what to tell them first before i divulge anything and put my foot in my mouth..

Thanks

[Moe Bedard]

The reason why I asked is because we are not seeing any principle reductions on first mortgages.........whether or not it will happen in the future is anyones guess.
Given the criteria of the loan..........your investor may be FannieMae or FreddieMac and they do offer modifications that will lower rates and extend terms and you may be able to ask for a principle forbearance if you plan on keeping the condo..........but for these options you would need to call and begin the process and ask what is available.

AHMSI
1-877-304-3100

[Hurricane]

Thanks ***... I have a friend that bought his first condo nearby.. back in 05 at the hight of the inflated rates here in Miami... He may have been the victim of predatory lending. He told me after filing bankruptcy he was able to get a principle reduction from 275,000 to 120,000.

Is this normal?

[Moe Bedard]

no.......it could be the forbearance of principle which most think is a reduction because it appears that way, but it isn't, it will usually have a balloon payment due upon selling, refinancing, or paying off the note term.

Or he was able to strip his second lien through a Chapter 13 bk...........you may want to clarify what exactly he did.

[Hurricane]

I see... Ill ask him for more detail.

Thanks your great!!!!

[Hurricane]

Name: Maria
Address:
Miami Beach FL
Lender Name: AHMAI
Loan #:

Dear Jeanne Drake,

I am writing this letter to explain my unfortunate set of circumstances that have caused us to become delinquent on our mortgage. We have done everything in our power to make our payment on time; unfortunately, we have fallen short. Please
Consider working with us to modify our loan. Our number one goal is to keep our home and we would appreciate any opportunity to do that.

Upon leaving our City, New Orleans, during Hurricane Katrina, what little savings that we had was liquidated to replace all of our basic necessity’s that were destroyed. What was left we used to relocate to South Florida, and with hard work, in just three years have been married, and have realized the dream on owning our own home. Unfortunately for us we bought at a time in south Florida when prices were at their highest, and for us 215,000 was a modest 1-bed room condo. Now, after the market adjustment of recent, the comparables in our building have been reduced to less than $100,000, and there are several foreclosures that further add to the reduction.

Despite this loss in equity we have had every intention of sticking it out, and making our payments till the market favors a sale. We realize this could take years. Unfortunately with the added economic slowdown we have fallen behind on our payments.

There are unforeseeable reasons that caused us to fall behind on our payments:

A. The Business I worked for closed down,
and I took a pay cut in my new position.
B. My husband is a freelance technician and there has been a slowdown of work.
C. In addition to the slowdown, my husband has several clients with delinquent accounts.
D. Our Monthly Condo Maintenance fees have risen.

We believe this situation will be temporary. Recently, I have been given the title of General Manager, and will be reviewed in February for a raise. In south Florida, January-March is our busy season and work is steadier for my husband. We feel that a loan modification would greatly benefit us both. We would appreciate if you can work with us to lower our Mortgage with a Capital Reduction so we can stay in our home and keep in good standing with your firm.

We truly hope that you will consider working with us and we are anxious to get this settled so we all can move forward on our goals. We will be happy to provide any relevant documentation in a timely fashion, to help expedite the process.

I can be reached by email: @Yahoo.com
Or by Fax: 305-

Sincerely and Respectfully,
Maria

_______________________________

1-29-09