“She looked me straight in the eye and told me that if we hadn’t come to help her and her husband, they had planned on killing themselves. That’s why we do this.” said Adam Blanke, Program Field Manager of FAIR Program.
What should have been his most difficult client turned into a much needed opportunity to help save a family’s home and financial future.
FAIR Program assists homeowners in getting lenders to modify their mortgages after defaulting on their home loans. With the Making Home Affordable Program in its expected last year of operation, hundreds of homeowners needing loan modifications have called FAIR offices to speak with a personal counselor to guide them through the process of saving their home.
Many of FAIR’s clients are empty nesters or middle aged professionals who have been laid off, fired or experienced a significant drop in their working hours. They’ve been offered help from other law firms and attorneys with no luck in getting approved. Like, Carina P., a young single 30-something mother of one whose daughter was approached by an attorney who rudely warned the child that her mother and family would be out of a home if they didn’t call him immediately.
Stories like these run the gamut in the FAIR offices where they hear of nefarious types scamming homeowners out of money every day. Still, without knowledge of any other help, most people find themselves thankful for even the hope of getting approved for a mortgage modification. Unfortunately, not many homeowners can afford the thousand dollar price tags that come with requesting services from an attorney.
FAIR Program assigns a team of counselors, processors and coordinators to take on the often difficult process of navigating through meeting lender demands and following through to getting a principal reduction or other accommodation to make payments more affordable. FAIR Counselors sit next to their clients with lenders on conference call to go through their needs and move stages along. FAIR also helps facilitate needed paperwork and financial documentation.
And the fee for this one-to-one personal service? FAIR Program does so free of charge. Clients are gracious enough to offer reviews for their respective counselors which helps a great deal in getting other homeowners in the door to receive much needed help. FAIR Program makes revenue from those homeowners who are unlikely to afford their payments even after a modification.
“We review personal finances with our clients while applying for loan mods, so we know when a homeowner simply can’t afford to remain in the home. It’s better for them to sell and avoid the sting of foreclosure to get on the track of improving their financial future.” Blanke stated.
There are laws protecting us all from the scammers but most people are unaware of them. What homeowners should know is:
- California law prohibits attorneys receiving advance fees for residential loan modifications. Even still, many attorneys have tried and some may even attempt charging hefty fees after a loan mod has been approved.
- Laws are changing swiftly to make it illegal to charge homeowners fees at any time for residential loan modifications
- FAIR Program uses HAMP guidelines to pre-qualify hundreds of homeowners for free loan modification services. To date, the company has saved more than $10 million in real estate throughout Los Angeles through its loss mitigation efforts.
To learn more about FAIR Program, visit: www.fairprogram.org