Some of you have asked what the procedure is for mortgage companies to suspend payments. I can only speak to my own experience with Bank of America, but maybe others can reply to this blog and share their own process. So here goes.
I called the Bank of America (at the time it was Countrywide) standard customer service number which I have as 800-669-6607. I had to go through many layers until they connected me to the "Loss Mitigation Team". I recommend you simply ask directly for the "Loss Mitigation Team" and avoid hours of being on hold. :-)
From there, they take your information and you will have to state something like the following: "I've found out that the property under this loan has Chinese Drywall which has rendered my home uninhabitable." At this point, you might find that the person you are speaking to has no idea what Chinese Drywall is, so you'll have to offer a description. I was advised by my attorney not to EVER say the word "toxic" and instead offer something like this: "There are gases emitted from the drywall that are corroding copper and other metals within my home, which are also causing me to suffer adverse health effects. So I have no choice but to move out of my home (or I have moved out already depending on your circumstance). Please be advised that I am doing everything possible to resolve this matter. Given that I cannot live in my home and have been forced to incur other expenses as a result of this situation, I request a forbearance and ask that you refrain from reporting this to the credit bureaus."
They will then put this information in the computer AND you will have to write a "Hardship letter" and fax it to them. Just put the same information as above with your loan number and property address and sign it at the bottom. They may also ask you to detail your monthly expenses, salaries etc. Just so you're clear on everything, I would write all this down before making the call. Their premise is to understand if you can cover your monthly expenses even with having to move somewhere else. Therefore, I highly recommend doing all the math before making the call so you're not trying to do it all in your head while you're on the phone with the person -- not fun!
You will then hear from a "Negotiator" who will call you within a few days to a week or so. This "Negotiator" will likely tell you that the only program they have is for a 3 month "Special Forbearance" and that you will have to pay the lump sum of the payments you missed at the end of the three months. They do try to scare you, but it is the only way so far that Bank of America has decided to deal with this situation. So far, there are no Chinese Drywall special programs available as of yesterday when I called them again.
They will send you a document via FedEx that you have to sign and FedEx it back to them within a certain period of time. It reads very scary, but again, unless you're willing to keep paying them for a home you may or may not be able to live in, then it's the only choice at that moment. Once you send this document, call them the day after and make sure they received it. Mine got magically "lost" in their mailroom despite the fact I had the FedEx confirmation that someone over there signed for it. They retrieved it a few days later and graciously gave me an "extension" on the deadline they imposed for this document to be returned.
Once you have that confirmation, they leave you alone for 3 months. This is at the point where I am now. I have a couple of weeks left on my forbearance. I tried calling yesterday to let them know that the house is still not fixed and the builder hasn't done anything yet. They told me they can't even speak to me until my forbearance is up in a couple of weeks.
I asked what will happen then and the lady told me that they will request the lump sum. I advised that I would not be able to pay that. She said at that point they might try to do a modification to my loan. If that doesn't work either, then they'll send me a letter giving me an additional 30 days before foreclosure proceedings MAY occur. Now, what I've been reading in the news and from the inflection of her voice, they may not start forclosure for months if at all. It seems some banks don't REALLY want to own a bunch of Chinese Drywall houses. I wonder why??? :-)
The whole thing seems like a bad game of chicken and whoever flinches first loses! So, I'll definitely let you know what happens on my end in a few weeks, but at least I hope that this helps some of you out for a little while anyway.
Oh, by the way, the tell you that it will hit your credit report immediately. Now, I did notice that my credit cards reduced their credit limits on me by a lot, but I still have been able to get tons of credit for furniture etc... My attorney advised me to take out as much credit as possible BEFORE it goes any further as a "just in case" precaution.
Good luck everyone and please let us know (even anonymously) how it goes with your bank.
0 comments:
Post a Comment