Stop Foreclosure Answer

In a post to this blog in mid August I reported on the initial status report on the Making Home Affordable Modification Program which the Obama Administration released on August 4.

You may recall that I was really upset when I reviewed the report.  The mortgage companies participating in the program not only flunked in their handling of loan modifications, they barely scored.  That report revealed that trial modifications had started on only 9% of the 2,705,302 loans that were eligible for these modifications.

Only a 3% Increase

The Obama Administration released the report for August on September 9th.  Let me tell you – there wasn’t much improvement.  It was estimated that the number of loans eligible for loan modifications increased from 2,705,302 to 2,965,980.  Trial modifications have only been offered on 12% of these.  There was only an increase of 3%.

Some people tended to discount the initial report.  They felt that the mortgage companies had to ramp up their departments to handle the volume of requests they received for loan modifications and by the end of July these departments were just starting to move on the applications.

The figures in the August report discount that.  These indicate that the mortgage companies are not doing a good job on loan modifications.  The horror stories that  we have been hearing and reading about where loan modifications are being given at the last minute and only through outside pressure are just the tip of the iceberg.  Most people facing foreclosure who have applied for loan modifications are not talking about the problems they are encountering.

Saxon Mortgage – The Best Performing Company

The August report indicates that Saxon Mortgage is the best performing mortgage company.  They have authorized trial modifications on 39% of the estimated 73,694 loans that are eligible.  39% is not good.  However, the next highest large company is GMAC.  They have offered trial modifications on 26% of the estimated loans they have that are eligible for modifications.

Don’t Be Misled By Saxon’s Statistics

I was all set to commend Saxon for the job they were doing, that is, until I did a Google search on them.

The first place I started was their website.  I was encouraged.  There they said “Our goal is to provide valued services with Care, Responsibility and Attention to detail to ensure a unique and positive experience with Saxon.  At Saxon, we pledge to deliver courteous and knowledgeable responses to all customer inquiries.”

Then I checked to see what their customers, the people facing foreclosure, had to say about them.  Most said that they were the worst company to deal with.  The problems ranged from poor service to poor record keeping to not recording payments promptly to losing documents sent to them.  I found very few instances where people had any positive comments about the company.  I said to myself – if this is the company with the best record to date in the Making Home Affordable Modification Program what are the others like.

Yet People Believe They Can Deal Directly With These Companies Themselves

Over and over again I see and hear stories of people facing foreclosure who feel that they can deal with their mortgage company, get the modification they need and save their home.  In my opinion these people are just setting themselves up to be slaughtered.  Anyone facing foreclosure should get a lawyer or an expert in stopping foreclosure to help them.

You also need all of the knowledge available to help you to deal with your situation.  In my book, The Stop Foreclosure Answer Book, there is much information on what you can expect and how to deal with it.  You can find out more about my book by clicking Stop Foreclosure.

Much Success,

Mark Elkins