It is time for me to find a way to end the forbearance and start making payments again.
For reasons that many of my viewers are aware of, I can’t find software jobs anymore even though I have the skills to do the things they say they can’t find workers to do like develop this site:
https://h1bjoblicenses.com/newmenu.php
So I filled out their forms and anxiously waited to see what kind of plan they would come up with.
They didn’t, they simply said they were denying me because I had insufficient income.
I’m thinking what is this?
I already have the mortgage, why have you ran a credit check, and how can you deny me what I already have when it is obvious that my social security check will cover my mortgage payment.
Not knowing what to do, I immediately requested an additional 90 day forbearance to give me time to find a solution.
For income, I have $1,129 per month from social security, and because I rented out my house and moved into the garage to save my mortgage, I make an additional $1,000 per month there which is comprised of $850 per month rent, and half of the utilities and then even though it is a struggle, I make about $500 per month fixing mowers.
Granted I can’t count on the mower income, and the rental income could vary from time to time if they don’t pay the rent, but I believe I can always find additional tenants should that occur.
So ultimately I make about $24,000 a year, maybe even close to the limit that I can make of $18,960 per year on early social security.
This is where I’m going to document my research to help fight what is happening and retain my mortgage.
9. Do my missed payments automatically move to the end of the loan?
No. Your mortgage servicer can’t automatically move those payments to the end of the loan because that would alter the recorded terms of your mortgage note. However, if it benefits you to handle repayment this way, you and your mortgage servicer can explore a loan modification to extend the term beyond the original maturity (paid-in-full) date of the mortgage loan. VA allows modified loans to be extended up to 360 months (30 years), as long as the extension is 120 months (10 years) or less from the original maturity date on your mortgage note.
https://benefits.va.gov/homeloans/cares-act-frequently-asked-questions.asp
If I understand this, I have a va mortgage currently at 5.5% for $116,500 with payments of $979.31 per month which is comprised of $312.32 per month for escrow taxes and insurance and the remainder being the actual loan.
The current va mortgage rate is 3% so if we figure $116,500 for 40 years, we end up with a monthly payment of $417.05
How can I not make that payment, even with taxes and insurance with my social security income of $1,129.00 per month?
So I contacted the company that originally got me the va mortgage and asked them what I could do.
Keep in mind that with a year unemployed because of the covid shutdown, and being denied unemployment, my credit has totally been destroyed.
If I had done this to myself, you wouldn’t hear a peep out of me, but I didn’t shut down the global economy.
Our government did, and they assured us that our va mortgages would work with us to come out of this nightmare when they opened the economy back up.
So, I just check your scores and they are coming in a little bit too low for us to be able to refinance your loan.
Here is what you should do: It looks like “Mr. Cooper” is the company that is currently servicing your loan. You should give them a phone call and ask them about a streamline refinance. They should be able to refinance your home at a lower rate and your credit scores will not matter.
I’ve attached their information below:
https://www.mrcooper.com/about_us/overview
I wish we were able to do more for you, but I think that Mr. Cooper should be able to help you get into a lower rate.
I attempted to ask Mr. Cooper about a streamline refinance, but I was advised that I do not get to choose my options and I had to fill in their paperwork and they would make the decisions what I could and could not do.
When they told me yesterday that I was denied, and asked me what I was going to do, I told them that I’m going to fight you and keep my mortgage.
One option that should be available to me now that I’m 63, and nearly 64 is a reverse mortgage.
I attempted to do that when I turned 62 but was told that I don’t have enough equity in the property.
Surely with the way real estate has appreciated here in this part of Texas, that is no longer the case and I would be interested in discussing this if it is an option.
According to Mr. Coopers website, they estimate I now have $23,878 in equity.
11. What is loan deferment? Would deferring the missed payments prevent me from selling my home in the future?
Loan deferment is when your lender defers payments to the loan maturity date or until you refinance your loan or sell the home. The missed payments are still a part of the overall amount owed, but not part of the principal balance. Hence, the deferred amount will not gain interest.
A deferred amount would not prevent you from selling your home. However, the deferred amount would be connected to your loan until the deferred amount is repaid. If you do not repay it by the time you are ready to sell your home, it would come due as a part of the sale.
The deferred amount must be paid by the existing loan maturity date, when the property is sold, or anytime the loan is paid in full. But a deferment does not extend the maturity date of your loan.
Generally, you and your lender could agree to “roll the payments in” to the end of the loan by extending the maturity date by the number of missed payments. However, that would require a loan modification. It would not be a deferment.
It looks like there are all kinds of provisions to get out of this forbearance, but it appears that Mr. Cooper is not willing to play by the rules:
12. How do I make up missed payments and retain homeownership if I don’t get a COVID-19 forbearance? What about after my COVID-19 forbearance ends? What if I had missed payments unrelated to the COVID-19 situation?
Contact your mortgage company to explore three basic options to make up missed payments and retain your home:
- Special Forbearance: Special forbearance is a longstanding loss mitigation option to help Veterans who have run into temporary financial difficulties. It is different from a COVID-19 forbearance and is not specific to financial hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As discussed above, a forbearance is a time period that the mortgage servicer agrees to accept reduced payments or no payments. If you missed payments before the declaration of the COVID-19 national emergency, a special forbearance could be an option. It may also be an option if your COVID-19 forbearance ends and you need additional time to make up the missed monthly payments.
- Repayment plan: You and your mortgage company can agree to terms where you pay a specified amount paid above the regular monthly mortgage payment to bring your loan current over time.
- Loan Modification: As mentioned above, a modification may be appropriate, if you resolved or plan to resolve the reason for default and can resume making regular monthly mortgage payments, but you can’t afford to pay the additional amount to make up the missed payments over time. Your mortgage company may offer an option to modify your existing mortgage note to extend the term (time to repay) of your loan. Missed payments are included in the loan amount and your new principal balance is amortized (paid off) over the new remaining term of your loan to reduce the burden of repayment. Keep in mind that a loan modification may change your interest rate.
You may have heard that VA will offer a short-term program to provide a financial alternative to help those who have received COVID-19 forbearance. This one-time secondary VA loan is called the COVID-19 Partial Claim Payment Program. It includes VA “buying” your missed payments from your mortgage company so that VA can offer you favorable repayment terms. The program will only be available from July 27, 2021 through October 28, 2022.
No mention of this was even discussed to me.
I’m still researching this, but it seems to me the best thing to do would to find a way to pay the $19,381.79 in forbearance due and start making the monthly payment of $979.31.
It appears that the VA has a partial claim payment program to help do that, but since it seems I have been denied for every bit of help I have asked for, I don’t hold out much hope for that, but I will try.
The best thing would be for me to find a software job, but based on 20 years experience, I don’t see that happening either for reasons the viewers of keep america at work are well aware of.
If you have read this far, I will be adding to this as I research and try the various solutions so that I can document my thoughts and find a way out of this nightmare.