We Buy Houses Blog, REO, Stop Foreclosure Home Loan Modifications Blog

I have a temp agency who is trying to set me up with a temp to hire position in inside sales selling loan modification products to homeowners whose homes are about to go into foreclosure. I know there are a lot of homes right now going into foreclosure, but should I consider this opportunity? This is a new business getting started with seven reps that eventually will eventually expand to 30 reps. I may have the opportunity to get into management if I do well to begin.
In reference to first answer, this is one of the concerns I have had about the position.

Understand that this sort of business is going to be short term. Within a couple of years, there will no longer be a need for loan modifications.

we bought a home in july 2007, and since my mother’s fiance lost his job (due to the economy) to a much lower one, we no longer can afford the house like we once did. we also cannot sell it, as homes are becoming much more readily available for much cheaper than we paid. i pay rent, i have a 3 year old brother in the house, so she’s desperate to keep the house. we had a man come to us about savemyhomenow.com trying to help us. it sounds too good to be true, so we’ve of course been hesitant but as things get harder and as our home mortgage company doesn’t do much to work with us, my mom is getting more desperate. the guy wants 1500 up front, 1500 dollars later. does anyone know if this home loan modification works? he’s promising us a lower mortgage rate, and no payments for a couple months because we "got a mortgage when we shouldn’t have" (her fiance is not on the mortgage.) is this guy a scam? is there any companies like this that AREN’T scams? Please let me know all you can. Thanks so much.

SCAM – Without a a doubt. Keep current on the mortgage. March 4 all the details come out but it looks like your current mortgage has to be backed by Fannie or Freddie.

My husband was laid off last year but luckily found a job. The job paid $2,000 less a month. In the past year we have cashed out two 401K to meet our monthly expenses. I’ve always paid my bills on time and our credit score is about 760. Recently We’ve been looking into refinancing our home to a lower interest rate(currently at 6.675%) Our income is too high for the government modification. Our house appraised for $100,000 less than what we owe on the loan so we were unable to refi. There are forclosures all up and down our street with several houses that are abandoned(looks like squatters have moved in next door) so we know that we could never sell our house even in a short sale. It seems like the bank would want to help me stay in my home and make regular payments at a lower interest rate. Anyone have any suggestions other than walking away? I’m in Southern California.
Hey thanks tax lady for your worthless advise. For your info when my husband was laid off last year when the economy TANKED we used our years worth of savings so blow it out your A**. I’m trying to save my house from a mess that the BANKS made not the mess that I made.

Don’t hold your breath.

Sorry to blunt, but the loan modification program is a scam.

We qualify and have the right income and have been trying to get a modification for a YEAR! We’ve seen an attorney and went to an assistance program with a good reputation. We can’t get responses from our mortgage company and haven’t gotten the same person on the phone there even one time. It is a complete runaround.

I’ve written letters to all our congressmen, to the papers, and to the federal government. There is no help.

If you are upside down, you need to look at making some hard business decisions. We are seriously considering walking away. On my street, there are only 9 houses and 7 of them are abandoned, vacant, for sale, or have been foreclosed on. I live in a waterfront community in Florida. One in three houses in my subdivision are in foreclosure. There is NO short sale relief. On average, the houses that are selling, are selling for less than half their worth.

I have a legitimate recent appraisal of our newly extensively remodeled home for 245K. We owe much less than that, but no realtor will list it for more than 140K. I owe more than that.

Why keep paying on a piece of property that isn’t worth the paper it’s mortgaged on?

Crummy situation, huh?

If you get help, then bless you. Good Luck.

Edit: The "Tax Lady" is an idiot and not in touch with reality. In my case, we had a year’s worth of our bills and mortgage in a saving account as an emergency fund. My husband is a general contractor and we’re in one of the hardest hit areas of the country. In my county, unemployment has hit 16%. We’ve suffered a loss of more than 75% of our income between both our jobs (my 14 years of employment didn’t matter a bit when my company decided to reduce hours across the board). If we spend our emergency fund and then deplete our savings trying to hold on to a house that isn’t worth anything, who’s the dumbass? Credit doesn’t mean anything when you are out on the street without a dollar in your pocket. I have kids….do you think I care about credit when I’m worried about buying groceries? When I took out my mortgage, I had every honorable intention to repay the loan. If I walk away, it is because I am putting my family’s needs first. It may not be a strong financial decision to make, but it is the moral thing to do for my family.

Looking for foreclosures listing online, but find must want you to join. Any real listing out there. Thanks

realtor.com is a great site to look at. We found our home now on there and it was a foreclosure. Not all homes listed on that site are foreclosures but you can search and see what you find. You can put in an area, certain zip code, price range, bed room size and other misc information to narrow down your search. Good luck.

We are 3 months behind. I finally found work and we have tried to work with the mortgage company with no luck. Do any of those places that advertise that they can stop a foreclosure work? Any input would be appreciated. If it makes a difference or not we live in TN

Be very careful about the "Stop Foreclosure" lawyers and companies. Some are not reputable and others are outright scams.

Check out the website for HUD (Housing and Urban Development) for Tennessee: http://www.hud.gov/local/tn/homeownership/foreclosure.cfm

The fact that you live in Tennessee is very important because state law governs foreclosures. I am not in your state, but many states have a mandatory redemption period (in MN, our redemption period is 6 months) which may provide you with a chance to resolve the issue or sell your home.

If Tennessee has a redemption period, you may be able to sell your home or arrange for a short sale to get out from under the mortgage. In either case, a foreclosure will affect your credit rating and your ability to purchase another home.

With the number of foreclosures these days, I am a bit surprised that the mortgage company won’t work with you. There may be a state run agency that can help you negotiate with your lender. Or contact a HUD approved conseling agency: http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcc_home.cfm

Please be careful and good luck.

Just wondering how i legally open up my own Real Estate Investment company. Is a LLC or an INC better?

Your best bet is to register as an LLC – it is a lot more flexible than a corporation. Additionally, from my observations, most real estate investors prefer LLCs rather than corporations. In fact, most of Donald Trump’s companies are LLCs.

Anyway, to open a real estate investment co., you must have a name for your company, and you must register it under a state. Most real estate investors register their companies in Delaware or Nevada because these states seem to be the most flexible when it comes to business. You’ll have to pay an initial fee for registration and annual taxes for your profits. To register, go to www.corporate.com for further information.

BTW, you’ll also need to hire a lawyer and an accountant to avoid legal issues and pay less taxes.