FORBEARANCE ON MORTGAGE ISSUES AFTER HURRICANE
In September of 2017, Florida experienced it’s second major hurricane episode within the past year. Hurricane Irma caused extensive damage to major population centers in Florida, including Jacksonville. A federal disaster declaration was issued just prior to the storm making landfall in the Florida Keys. As a result of the federal disaster declaration, both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two large federal mortgage holders, have temporarily suspended foreclosure sales in the State of Florida. See article below.
http://www.tcpalm.com/story/weather/hurricanes/2017/09/15/lenders-offering-mortgage-assistance-hurricane-irma/670047001/
As part of the federal disaster declaration, there are several mortgage companies that have offered what are termed forbearance plans. In reality, these plans are a trap for unsuspecting homeowners struggling with repair bills and missed work.
If you elect to take advantage of the mortgage assistance program through your lender, the lender will offer an immediate 90 day forbearance of the mortgage payments through the end of 2017. In January of 2018, if you made no payments during that previous 90 days, you will owe 4 months of payments. Again, the payments were only temporarily put on hold while the disaster effects have subsided. The payments were not forgiven and the loan was not modified in any way.
The servicer may attempt to offer a modification package to the homeowner in January of 2018. This will require the normal modification documentation be provided to the servicer by the homeowner. The modification is not guaranteed and will have no legal effect on foreclosure proceedings being commenced.
If you find yourself in such a predicament, our office can advise you on relief offered by Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Chapter 13 in Jacksonville, Florida offers the ability to stop foreclosure proceedings and submit modification documents through a court supervised process. Our office has a dedicated staff member who handles only the modification documents for your case and ensures that all of the appropriate documents are submitted through a dedicated website that is used by Chapter 13 filers. No more faxing or mailing multiple copies of the same documents to the mortgage company after they lost things for the third time!!! The Chapter 13 process also can allow for a cure of past due amounts over a period of up to 60 months if your loan was recently modified. Either way, the homeowner has the ability to save the home.
At Mickler & Mickler, we attend Court and see the bankruptcy trustees and judges in action several times a week. We have the experience to guide you to the right decision about whether to file a case, and if so, what Chapter to file. When you contact our office, we can help you in your case with sound legal advice.
Please contact Mickler & Mickler at 904.725.0822 or bkmickler@planlaw.com. We will be happy to set you up a free appointment to discuss your situation and potential solutions.
Bryan Mickler
