Aurora Loan Mod Question...

[sval82]

So I am trying to modify my loan with ALS. The situation is that I am the only one on the loan, at the time that I purchased the house my fiance (now husband) didn't have the best credit so our broker told us the best option would be to put the loan in my name "no doc" and include both of our incomes... So our loan is $289k, interest only for 10 years, at 7.25% fixed. Not a horrible loan. The problem is that we recently had a baby, and of course as soon as I got pregnant or shortly there after the economy took a nose dive and my husband was laid off from his job as an HVAC installer in the new home industry. He looked for another job, but when nothing turned up after a few months we decided the best option would be to send him to a trade school to get more knowledge and certifications which then would help him find a GREAT job... This didn't quite work out. He finished school around the time our son was born and started looking again. Then one day his previous employer called and offered him his old job back but with no benefits and a $2 an hour pay cut, no over time, etc. They kept him on for 3 months before laying him off again. Then he looked again for a job and finally found something, and had to take an additional $4 an hour pay cut... So he is now making $6 an hour less and we have the added expense of a child and daycare... This has caused us to accumulate cc debt, of approaching $30k.

So now my hope is that I can get my home loan modified and get back on track financially. My question to the experts is: should my husbands income be included? According to ALS they say no, he is not on the loan. My mod paperwork is now in underwriting and I just hope that the underwriter agrees. I called on 3 seperate occasions to ALS to ask this question and all 3 of the reps said the same thing that he is not on the loan so no need to include his income. Of course this makes my mod payment really low. My current int. only payments including taxes and insurance are 2050 and my mod pmts are at 1290. So now we have a surplus and I am so tempted to pay down the cc debt with the extra money but I am worried that we may not get the mod and then have to pay the back payments... Based on my scenario, do you think that it is correct to not include the husbands income and what will happen if they decide not to modify the loan?

[Moe Bedard]

sval82,


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


the income for your husband doesn't have to be used unless it helps you with the mortgage payment and you want it to be considered.........that is up to you.

If they deny the modification...........at that point you would need to ask what options you have from the investor on your loan........they will let you know.



Keep us posted on your progress............

[sval82]

Thanks ***. I guess it is similar to what the MHA says about child support and allimony you can choose to include it but it is not necessary.

So what I did when I filled out my little income and expense financial statement form was reduce some of my expenses because my husband does have some income, just not a lot and I only included debt payments for debt in my name. But then I included in my hardship letter all that I said above. About my husband losing his job multiple times, but I wonder if they will not take that into consideration since he is not on the loan and I am not including his income? Well, hopefully just the fact that I had my son and our expenses have increased greatly will be enough of a hardship to qualify... After reading some of the stories on here I am starting to wonder if I should have tried to get help with my package from one of the NPO's that you guys recommend?? Hopefully it all works out!

[folide]

At first I did not include my wife's income but then I was told by Aurora that I had too big of a deficit to be considered for a mod. I then included her income and am now in trial payments. You need to make sure you do not have too big of a deficit or surplus on your financial worksheet.

[sval82]

Hi ***- I have another question for you... I just found out about an inheretance that I should be receiving in the next month or two. I am in my trial period (May through September) the inheretance is only $10k and between my husband and myself we have about 30k in cc debt. Do you think that receiving this money is going to ruin my chances to get my loan modified. My thinking is, yes, this is going to help us out, but hopefully help us get out of debt more quickly not just help us pay payments we can't afford for another 12 months and then still have all the debt. I am thinking maybe I can just hold the check until my mod is finalized? Do you think this is necessary? So far Aurora hasn't asked for bank statements, but I think if they do and they see that they will be less inclined to approve me for a mod despite the fact that this is a one time thing and doesn't help us out long term...

[sval82]

Oh and I also have another 12k in student loans...

[Moe Bedard]

Unfortunately......this is a personal decision that only you can make..........

[sval82]

I just received my signed Loan Modification Agreement from ALS. There is a cover letter stating that they can still request more information, but if you read the agreement the fact that they signed it is acknowledgement that the information I have provided means that I do qualify and the only hang up would be if I missed my last payment due August 1st or they requested information and that didn't coincide with what I have provided thus far... Is this correct? Does the signed Loan Mod agreement mean that I am going to get the loan mod?

[Moe Bedard]

It sounds like the MHA (Making Home Affordable) Trial modification..............does it indicate this on the documents?
If so then if you make the trial payments on time and your income/expenses have not changed at the end of the trial they should make the modification permanent at that time.

Make sure that you stay in touch with them through the process of the trial.

[sval82]

Yes it is the MHA trial modification. My last trial payment is due 8/1, I last called Aurora like 2 weeks ago and they said my file is being reviewed but there were no notes or anything, they have not requested any additional information from me. They never seem to have anything to tell me but maybe now that we are in the home stretch they will???

[folide]

This is great news SVAL82. I am in the exact same situation as you. I am on a 3 month trial period with my last payment due August 1st. I have also called and they do not have any news, they say it is with the underwriter. I hope the loan mod comes in the mail soon like yours. I assume this is the actual loan mod paperwork you are referring to and not the trial agreement.

[sval82]

I beleive it is called the Loan Modification Agreement, it is the one that they originally send to you and have you sign, but now I got it back signed by them... It is the agreement that says you are agreeing that you are at risk to default and you agree to pay the trial period payments, etc. I'm taking it as good news... I saw the big envelope from Aurora yesterday and couldn't rip into it fast enough. So when I saw what it was I was first just thankful that it wasn't a letter saying I was not approved then I read through it all again and decided it was a good sign.

[folide]

Originally Posted by sval82

I beleive it is called the Loan Modification Agreement, it is the one that they originally send to you and have you sign, but now I got it back signed by them... It is the agreement that says you are agreeing that you are at risk to default and you agree to pay the trial period payments, etc. I'm taking it as good news... I saw the big envelope from Aurora yesterday and couldn't rip into it fast enough. So when I saw what it was I was first just thankful that it wasn't a letter saying I was not approved then I read through it all again and decided it was a good sign.

Oh. Okay. That is the trial agreement. I got that one a month ago. They will eventually mail the actual loan mod documents with all the interest rate, term, and any principal reduction details.

[sval82]

Okay... I would love to see that... I've tried to figure it out. I read that they first drop the rate down to no less than 2% then extend the term and last if those options are exhausted they will reduce the principal. I figure if they drop me down to 2% and extend my term to about 37 years they can get me to the target payment. But that will be really interesting to see for sure. I read on here somewhere that they try to or often "mistakenly" put too little aside for escrow... So that is one thing I will be looking at closely... Anyway I'd love to hear when you get your documents in since you got the other thing a month before me... Have they requested any additional information from you yet? I'd think they are going to want to see bank statements but so far they haven't requested anything...

[folide]

An interesting thing that happened to me was that I was behind on my property taxes by about 16k before entering into the trial agreement. Aurora recently paid off those taxes then they paid off the negative balance of 16k it cause in my escrow account and opened a new escrow account for future taxes and insurance (was paying those separately before).

The interesting thing was that somehow those payments (which were 9k and 6k separate payments for some reason) were showing up as me paying them. So when I called them to give the Western Union MTCN of my second payment due July 1st the rep told me I was capped and that they were moving forward with the loan mod. I asked what capped meant and she said that I had sent in all required documentation and fulfilled my trial payments. What?? Then she realized that I was barely calling in with my second trial payment and said something was wrong and that the payments to payoff escrow flagged the file as capped. She asked to call me back. She actually did call me back and told me that they had made a mistake and that the file had been reset (which made me a little nervous) but that it would not affect my modification timeline. She said I was one of the first in line.

I started thinking that by having all payments complete it would speed up the process so I then asked if I could make my final (August 1st) payment next week and she said yes. So I will be making my final trial payment on June 23rd and hopefully I will be capped and the loan mod could proceed faster.

[sval82]

Wow, that is interesting... Let us know how that goes, maybe I can try to make my last payment early too... I wouldn't feel comfortable paying it until my next payday though so not until 7/1... I don't want to have my savings completely depleted again But it would be a releif just to know that all is done and finalized with this loan mod, then I won't have to worry so much...

[folide]

Originally Posted by sval82

Wow, that is interesting... Let us know how that goes, maybe I can try to make my last payment early too... I wouldn't feel comfortable paying it until my next payday though so not until 7/1... I don't want to have my savings completely depleted again But it would be a releif just to know that all is done and finalized with this loan mod, then I won't have to worry so much...

Yes, I was trying to wait until July 2nd to pay the August 1st payment just so they do not think that I did not need a mod because I was paying all my trial payments almost up front but after that little incident last week I realized it does not matter when you pay the trial payments and if you have the money it would be a good idea to pay them sooner. It might speed up the process, at least that is what was happening to mine. I have not paid the mortgage since January so I do have some $ saved up to be able to do this. Also, I am curious what happened to the 16k they paid for past due taxes. My escrow balance is $2.68 and my principal balance has not changed. Crossing my fingers.

[auroraproblem]

Originally Posted by folide

Yes, I was trying to wait until July 2nd to pay the August 1st payment just so they do not think that I did not need a mod because I was paying all my trial payments almost up front but after that little incident last week I realized it does not matter when you pay the trial payments and if you have the money it would be a good idea to pay them sooner. It might speed up the process, at least that is what was happening to mine. I have not paid the mortgage since January so I do have some $ saved up to be able to do this. Also, I am curious what happened to the 16k they paid for past due taxes. My escrow balance is $2.68 and my principal balance has not changed. Crossing my fingers.

Good info. Our situation just does not allow us to have any extra money to pull that off (as we are not able to afford our second, however, we are breaking even without paying it).

[sval82]

We've been able to save a little during our trial period, but paying now would completely deplete our savings (we've only saved one mortgage payment), we are fortunate that we don't have a 2nd... I can't imagine... We are also fortunate that I am the only one on the mortgage so we don't have to include my husbands income, he makes less and has been laid off multiple times in the last two years, which leads to our unfortunate circumstance a mountain of cc debt. But once this is done I will feel comfortable paying big payments and hope to be out of debt in 2 years. Then we'll be able to live our lives a lot more comfortably. And of course I am assuming that my husband can stay employed full time over the next 2 years, something I should know better than to assume, right? I've made that assumption a few too many times...

[sval82]

Just paid our last trial payment... Due 8/1 paid 7/2, I called Aurora yesterday and the lady helping me seemed to not see anything in the computer on me... She finally had to put me on hold to ask her supervisor. Then came back on the line and said my mod is in underwriting and just keep making my modified payments. *** or Moe, anyone know what the deal is? Don't they have to get us an answer by the due date of the last trial payment? This is an MHA Mod... I just want an answer so that I can stop worrying... What is the hold up? Is it Aurora? The Government? Fannie Mae? I was hoping that paying the last payment would put me in the fast lane to get my mod wrapped up...

[auroraproblem]

Originally Posted by sval82

Just paid our last trial payment... Due 8/1 paid 7/2, I called Aurora yesterday and the lady helping me seemed to not see anything in the computer on me... She finally had to put me on hold to ask her supervisor. Then came back on the line and said my mod is in underwriting and just keep making my modified payments. *** or Moe, anyone know what the deal is? Don't they have to get us an answer by the due date of the last trial payment? This is an MHA Mod... I just want an answer so that I can stop worrying... What is the hold up? Is it Aurora? The Government? Fannie Mae? I was hoping that paying the last payment would put me in the fast lane to get my mod wrapped up...

There are several posts like this now about Aurora. I am starting to be a bit concerned about continuing the process myself. We are on 4 trial payments, we were current when we went into this. Will seem like a complete waste of time if at the end of 4 months, they simply delay more and ask for more payments.

We want to keep the house; however, we are now about 15% under on the first (let alone the second) and walking is looking like a faster answer.

[sval82]

Auroraproblem- We were also current before our modification trial period. I thought this could be the answer to our financial problems. My husband has been laid off several times over the past two years and has had to take a pay cut and on top of that we had our son. We have taken on a lot of credit card debt to keep up with the mortgage and it was all coming to a head when the MHA modification came out... I didn't see how we could continue living this way and being on the modified payments has helped us sooo much. I'm not going to give up until they tell me I am denied. About 2 weeks ago I checked my credit and it is pretty much ruined, the modified payments are bringing my credit score down over 100 points... Our car is getting old... We have been thinking once we finish paying off our credit card debt we could save to get a newer car... But if this doesn't work out we won't be paying off our credit card debt anytime soon, won't be able to get financed to get a newer car... it will just be bad, bad, bad. But I'd say don't give up. I'm sure Aurora is really overloaded with all these mods... And on the bright side my next payment isn't due until 9/1 so hopefully in the next month and a half they can pull it together!

[auroraproblem]

Originally Posted by sval82

Auroraproblem- We were also current before our modification trial period. I thought this could be the answer to our financial problems. My husband has been laid off several times over the past two years and has had to take a pay cut and on top of that we had our son. We have taken on a lot of credit card debt to keep up with the mortgage and it was all coming to a head when the MHA modification came out... I didn't see how we could continue living this way and being on the modified payments has helped us sooo much. I'm not going to give up until they tell me I am denied. About 2 weeks ago I checked my credit and it is pretty much ruined, the modified payments are bringing my credit score down over 100 points... Our car is getting old... We have been thinking once we finish paying off our credit card debt we could save to get a newer car... But if this doesn't work out we won't be paying off our credit card debt anytime soon, won't be able to get financed to get a newer car... it will just be bad, bad, bad. But I'd say don't give up. I'm sure Aurora is really overloaded with all these mods... And on the bright side my next payment isn't due until 9/1 so hopefully in the next month and a half they can pull it together!

Our situations are not much different then. We are going to see the process through, after the trial payments are completed per the agreement I will explore what to do at that time. I do know that WalkingAway posted a success, so they are doing it at least. As you said, they are perhaps just way behind.

[sval82]

Success! You can move me to the success section because I got the call today my modification was approved! I feel like the weight of the world has been lifted off of my shoulders... I can see a light at the end of the debt tunnel... Okay, okay, enough. I think I am one of the first people to get approved for an MHA modification from ALS... I originally sent my application on 4/20 and paid trial payments due 5/1, 6/1, 7/1, and 8/1. They called me this morning and said my paperwork is in the mail so I can't wait to get it and see the details. I'm not concerned about my payment amount changing because I'm paid salary so it really shouldn't change... But I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the details... I was on time before I started the trial period... Oh and no update on the Aurora website as of yet.

[auroraproblem]

Originally Posted by sval82

Success! You can move me to the success section because I got the call today my modification was approved! I feel like the weight of the world has been lifted off of my shoulders... I can see a light at the end of the debt tunnel... Okay, okay, enough. I think I am one of the first people to get approved for an MHA modification from ALS... I originally sent my application on 4/20 and paid trial payments due 5/1, 6/1, 7/1, and 8/1. They called me this morning and said my paperwork is in the mail so I can't wait to get it and see the details. I'm not concerned about my payment amount changing because I'm paid salary so it really shouldn't change... But I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the details... I was on time before I started the trial period... Oh and no update on the Aurora website as of yet.

Congratulations!! Without getting too personal, I would be interested in hearing the details of the loan (the percentage, etc..) and how they compared to what your original trial payment was. As we too will be closing in on this process.