Bank of America loan mod -SUCCESS!!

[LHarveyMadman]

Even though the subject of the investors hasn't come up, I have to believe that it will be a stumbling block in your attempts to combine your loans.

I think the FHA route is the better way to go. With your credit score, you'll have to go through manual underwriting, but it's still possible to be approved. I think you should look for some quick ways to boost your score, so the myFICO.com forums would be a good site to visit. FICO scores at the extreme ends of the spectrum (very low and very high) tend to be sensitive to minor changes in one's credit profile.

Anyways, good luck. Maybe NACA will come through for you. I've got my fingers crossed for you.

[emorybetsy]

Thank you!

You are right about FHA, I was told they would have to do a manual underwriting.

[LHarveyMadman]

An update: I submitted the signed and notarized modification papers in early January, and confirmed that they were received. Now they are in some sort of document purgatory, as far as I can tell. I have not yet received the final document, with the signature and notary stamp from Bank of America.

As instructed, I have been making payments directly to their loss mitigation address in Getzville, NY. My online account has not been updated with the new principal balance and interest rate. My payments (made in January and February) have been recorded, but they are not being deducted from the original balance. In addition, my account continues to "accrue" past due payments, now in the amount of $14k, which represents 4 months of missed payments. The payments I have made on the modified loan are not being deducted from this old balance, which I think is a good thing because then there won't be any confusion when the system finally updates.

I was told that because of the enormous volume of modifications that need to be processed, it could take as long as 3 months for everything to be finalized. I can believe that. As long as I continue to make on-time payments, there won't be any problem.

Because of the modification, B of A put a credit reporting freeze on my account in late October. It was due to expire on February 15. About 2 weeks ago I called to request an extension of the credit reporting freeze, and they extended it to the end of March. Hopefully that will be enough time for them to update my account.

I pulled one of my credit reports last week. My mortgage continues to report as "an account in good standing." No 30, 60, or 90+ day lates are reported. The last payment recorded was November. My credit score, I should add, is essentially unchanged for the past several months. So, it appears that the credit freeze is working.

[CaSea4Me]

When e-mailing the upper execs. what kind things should be covered in the e-mail?

[LHarveyMadman]

I included details about my loan, my current financial status, and my concerns about the affordability of the loan once it adjusts. I demonstrated that I would be able to afford a reasonable modification. I appealed to their business sense. I also included some personal information about my family and me, so that they would know a little about the people behind the financial instrument.

[CaSea4Me]

Originally Posted by LHarveyMadman

I included details about my loan, my current financial status, and my concerns about the affordability of the loan once it adjusts. I demonstrated that I would be able to afford a reasonable modification. I appealed to their business sense. I also included some personal information about my family and me, so that they would know a little about the people behind the financial instrument.

Who/where exactly should I send this info. to?

[LHarveyMadman]

The email addresses of the executives to whom I sent my letter are listed on post #28 of this thread. Good luck.

[sticky619]

Hi everyone,
Thank you everyone for sharing your stories!
LHarveyMadman - let me see if I hear you right:
1 - you never missed a payment
2 - you contacted BofA Loss Mitigation Dept (800-936-6362 and 800-846-2222) and no feedbacks from them.
3 - You email the four execs your hardship and the reason for your loan modification.

I never missed a payment is foreseeing some difficult times in the next couple of months because of a new baby arriving in June. My situation is a little different from everyone. We currently have a fixed 30 years mortgage at 5.25%. Has anyone apply for MOD with fixed payment like me? Do I have a chance of approval? MOD is our first option. If this doesn't go through, I am afraid that we might lose our house to foreclosure.

[saifnawaz]

Hi Sticky,

I am was in the ame situation as yours..
1) Never missed Payments and had 7 yr fixed loan with BOA
2) Expecting baby in April

I emailed Boa Exec and got call from BOA loss mit officer in a week. They reviewed my income(Pay check) and all expenses.. My income minus expense was about 100$ and I told them with baby coming in my expenses will shoot and i wont be able to make payments.. so they agreed for Loan mod and out me on 4 months forberance period where i am paying half my mortgage and after 4months they will let me know what mod they are doing...Thanks

[LHarveyMadman]

Hi Sticky,

You are correct about my situation and what I experienced. Since I posted my story and my method - which really isn't that different from what other people have done with other lenders - at least 5 other persons here have had success with B of A using the same approach. Most of us are in California.

Your situation is different because you already have a fixed rate at an interest rate that is considered to be very good. However, rates on conforming loans (don't know if that applies to you) are below 5% in some cases, so there is clearly room to move.

Is refinancing an option for you? If you have sufficient equity in your home (i.e. at least 20%), your request for modification might be turned down and you might be told to do a conventional refinance of your existing loan. Nevertheless, it does not hurt to try.

Start getting your numbers together - household income and expenses. Try to estimate how your expenses will change once your new child arrives. Remember, however, that having too much of a deficit will also disqualify you from getting a modification. If the lender determines that you can't afford the payment even with a modification, then you won't get it.

[sticky619]

Hi Saifna & LHarvey,

I forgot to mention that the loan I have is a joint loan with my dad. Since he is not living with us. For household income - would this just be me and the husband? Do I need to worry about my dad's income?

Our home value dropped 40K, I walked into the bank and talked to the head loan rep and was told that it is not beneficial for me to refinance since I already have really good rate.

Thank you!

[LHarveyMadman]

If you father is on the mortgage, then he shares responsibility for the payment. So, it is highly likely that the lender will require his income to determine whether you have an affordable mortgage or not.

[emorybetsy]

Hi Sticky619

I recieved a modification on my mortgage
I was not late
I had a fixed rate
The interest rate was reasonable
The only reason a loan modification helped me is because I was able to lengthen the term of the loan to 30 years, I think they may go to 40 years. I did not have a 30 year mortgage to begin with and we have been paying on it for several years. I my case it made a huge difference in the monthly payment. Did you run the numbers to see if it will make a difference in your monthly payment? here is a good calculator Mortgage Calculator

[laamim]

lharveymadman, i am with BOA too, what was your deficit when you were approved?
thanks

[LHarveyMadman]

I didn't have a deficit at the time that I was given a modification, but when my ARM adjusted and I would have started paying interest, then I would have probably run a deficit then.

[LHarveyMadman]

Okay, finally some activity on my online account that shows that the modification process is nearly complete. Today, my loan balance was updated to reflect the new principal balance. It also indicates the correct first payment date of the modified loan. The payment information and interest rate are still not updated. It still lists a large past-due payment which is a multiple of my old payment amount. It indicates when my last payment on the modified loan was received, but not the change in principal balance when the payments were applied.

[eichergm]

All - thank you so much for your feedback and help on this forum. I was able to successfully obtain a loan modification from BofA, but only after sending an email to the executives listed on this board. Thank you all for your help and info!

[laamim]

eichergm, would you tell us how long it took you to get a loan mod , and by how much they lowered your payment,,,,
thank you

[LHarveyMadman]

It's done! My loan modification is finalized. My online account reflects my current principal balance, new interest rate, and interest paid for the year. It says that there are no past due balances and no late fees. I also received a letter from B of A stating that the modification is now complete.

Even though I had been given repeated assurances that everything was fine, I'm glad to finally see that everything really has settled out the way that I had hoped.

Now I'm curious to see whether this modification has any effect on my FICO score. The last activity on my account reported to the credit agencies was in November. There shouldn't be any derogatory information based on what I have read, but I'll to wait and see.

Thanks, LoanSafe!

[Moe Bedard]

No, LHarveyMadman Thank You!!

For sticking around and helping us with the BofA members and others going through the same process as you did, we appreciate it.......

[emorybetsy]

yahoo! Congratulations!

[LHarveyMadman]

I'm happy to help. I take great joy in knowing that a handful of others have benefited from my story.

I just hope I don't post any more messages that others find offensive/insensitive that result in another 1000 "reputation points" being deducted!

[emorybetsy]

I am one of the handful you have helped! I honestly believe that I would not have been successful in getting a modification without your advice, I am forever greatful LHarvey!!! Thank you

[LHarveyMadman]

Heh heh....Betsy, thanks for the kind words, and I suspect that you're the one who just boosted my reputation. I wasn't trolling for points, but I'll accept them anyway!

[Moe Bedard]

Actually it was me.......