Thursday, June 25, 2009

R. GRACE RODRIGUEZ WILL VOLUNTEER FOR FREE SATURDAY JUNE 27, 2009

FREE LAWYERS TO ASSIST WITH LOAN MODIFICATIONS 6/27/09 10am - 2pm (Panorama High School)


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Date: 2009-06-25, 6:40PM PDT


The Law Offices of R. Grace Rodriguez is proud to volunteer for Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County and New Economics for Women with their homeowner Loan Modification Fair. It will be at Panorama City High School located at 8015 Van Nuys Boulevard, Panorama City, CA 91402 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Saturday June 27, 2009.

WHAT YOU MUST BRING:

2 months of current pay stubs or a profit loss statement for your self-employment business. Bring any rental agreements you have that can show you have a tenant living in your home.

We need your 2007 and 2008 income tax returns.

We need three months of bank statements.

A list of all of your household expenses

A copy of your most recent correspondence from your mortgage company.

A copy of any homeowners/property insurance you have.

Be ready to explain your hardship and why you fell behind in your mortgage.

There will be translators at the fair.

If you want more information call (866) 842-3391.


There will be a number of bank officials on hand to work on loan modifications at that time with private volunteer attorneys assisting homeowners absolutely for free. We really want to help you save your home.

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development says the bleeding has nearly stopped!

According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development we are in the deepest global recession in over sixty years. However, Secretary General Angel Gurria stated at a news conference this morning that the global economy is showing a slight improvement despite predictions that the US Economy will continue to shrink another 2.8 percent this year.

Jorgen Elmeskov acting economics department head stated "A really disastrous outcome has become more of a remote risk." Gurria further stated that the recovery "is likely to be both weak and fragile for some time." Recovery will remain dependent upon banks removing uncertainty of its balance sheets.

Let's translate what this means for my average client. It means that banks want to get the risky loans off their books. There are only so many ways a bank can do this.

1. Sell off the mortgage to another bank. Problem is not a lot of banks are buying risky mortgages. There are a few agressive investors who are purchasing some of these mortgages with no other intention but to foreclose on the borrowers if they cannot make good on their payments and arrearages. I expect to see more and more investors come to the table to take every advantage they can over borrowers who are in trouble.

2. Banks can modify the loans. However, as I have previously explained many of the banks are resistant to loan modification efforts because they risk investor lawsuits if the modifications are given without investor permission. Unfortunately many of the investors involved with these mortgages are large securitized loan packages involving many parties. Trying to get these big investors to agree on a modification is like trying to herd feral cats! Good luck.

3. FORECLOSURE FORECLOSURE FORECLOSURE: You have already read my thoughts on why the banks favor foreclosures. This cleans the books of the bad loans. Gives a new bank to give a loan that makes sense for the lower value of the property.

This is exciting news if you are trying to clean up your credit to get ready to buy an affordable home in this market.

The GOOD NEWS is that lenders are now offering trial period forebearances to sort out who is seriously able to make their mortgage payments. However this does not come without substantial risk given the language contained in these forebearance agreements in which the lenders are having borrowers admit that they are fully liable for their own loans, and that they have no bankruptcy options ever and they waive any notice of any foreclosure sale in the future. PLEASE DO NOT SIGN THESE AGREEMENTS. Have a competent attorney review them before you sign.

Thats all for now
Have a great week!

R. Grace Rodriguez, Esq.
(818) 734-7223

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Good news about Loan Modifications

My staff and I successfully obtained three loan modifications this week for our clients. We have six more clients who are going into what is called a "trial modification."

Essentially the trial modification period will allow the borrower to make three payments at a reduced payment rate which is supposed be right around what a permanently modified rate should be. If the borrowers are successful, and all the financials stay the same, they should get the modification they are seeking.

HOWEVER, if you are offered a loan modification trial period please read the fine print. Some of the banks are requiring you to give up your rights in bankruptcy, force you to sign a release that you won't sue the bank ever for any things they may have done wrong in the past, or admit that you committed fraud in your original loan application. Please bring your proposed loan modifications and trial repayment plans to an attorney or at the very least read them carefully and KNOW what the contract means!

Thanks for reading
R. Grace Rodriguez is
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