by SpringFour | Mar, 24, 2015 | Default
We hope you are inspired by the following story of a family who received help through MortgageKeeper and is now back on the path to financial sustainability.
Established in 2005, MortgageKeeper helps consumers locate local services to assist them with daily financial challenges. With over 7,000 resources in all 50 states, MK makes over 1 million referrals per year. Consumers need to know where to turn to find help from reputable organizations and MK provides the tools to do so. From help with paying utility bills, student loan debt, food assistance, prescription drug costs, and employment resources, MK’s easy to use applications are making a difference in consumer’s lives.
THE CASE STUDY
THE CHALLENGE
Illinois parents raising four children are behind on countless bills, including their mortgage.
THE SITUATION
“John and Susan” were victims of the recession. John was forced into early retirement and Susan’s job was furloughed due to a government shutdown. With sporadic work and eight months delinquent on their mortgage, the “Smith” family had exhausted their savings and the phone rang constantly from companies seeking payment on unpaid bills. They also received scam offers to “help” reinstate their mortgage.
Humiliated and helpless, John searched “nonprofit, HUD-certified counseling agencies” and subsequently reached Beatriz Becerra, a nonprofit foreclosure counselor at Clearpoint Consumer Counseling Services in California.
Beatriz, who works with clients in hardship throughout the U.S. on a daily basis, first told John to be wary of foreclosure rescue scams and “consultants” that promise to “save your home” for an upfront fee.
The Belleville, IL, family began a loan modification process with their lender, but did not receive a loan workout or other type of financial assistance.
HOW MK DESKTOP HELPED
After a thorough counseling session, Beatriz provided the Smith family with referrals from MK Desktop including food assistance, heating and utility assistance, prescription drug assistance, home repair assistance, employment services and legal services.
With MK Desktop’s well-vetted referrals, the Smith family also received income tax assistance and senior services. But perhaps the greatest help for the Smith family was being able to access the Hardest Hit Fund, which pays a portion of a borrower’s mortgage while unemployed or substantially underemployed. Skeptical at first, John was able to bring his loan current through the assistance of the Hardest Hit Fund.
Beatriz said, “I would not be able to do my job without MK Desktop referrals. These helpful community resources give my clients some consolation that they are not alone in their hardship. Reputable help is out there to save homes and change lives.”
by SpringFour | Feb, 18, 2015 | Default
We hope you are inspired by the following story of a family who received help through MortgageKeeper and is now back on the path to financial sustainability.
Established in 2005, MortgageKeeper helps consumers locate local services to assist them with daily financial challenges. With over 7,000 resources in all 50 states, MK makes over 1 million referrals per year. Consumers need to know where to turn to find help from reputable organizations and MK provides the tools to do so. From help with paying utility bills, student loan debt, food assistance, prescription drug costs, and employment resources, MK’s easy to use applications are making a difference in consumer’s lives.
THE CASE STUDY
THE CHALLENGE
A retired widow caring for her disabled 35-year-old son faces a harsh reality. Should she pay for heat, purchase medicine, buy food or pay the mortgage?
THE SITUATION
“Jennifer”, a Elberton, GA, homeowner for 10 years, is on a fixed income and facing mounting debt due to a $400 electric bill, high food prices and $250 monthly medication costs for her and her son. When she reaches Jula Pereira, a counselor with the nonprofit Consumer Credit Counseling Service of San Francisco, she is crying and feeling lost and alone.
Counselor Jula calmly assesses Jennifer’s situation and reassures her that help may be available – not only to save her home, but to also help with life’s necessities.
Jennifer is skeptical but calls several of the resources her counselor recommends, figuring she has nothing else to lose.
HOW MK DESKTOP HELPED
MK Desktop’s data put Jennifer in touch with utilities assistance and access to a discount drug program that is saving her substantially on monthly prescriptions. Additionally, she now receives resources from a local food bank to supplement her $72-a-month food stamp allowance.
Jennifer also connected with Georgia’s Homesafe Program to explore eligibility for mortgage reinstatement assistance and Hardest Hit Funds.
Much to Jennifer’s surprise, by accessing local nonprofit resources in Northeast Georgia, she reduced her expenses by more than $400 monthly, and is eligible for a loan workout with her lender. Now, instead of fear and uncertainty, she sees possibilities – thanks to foreclosure intervention counseling and MK resources.
by SpringFour | Jan, 14, 2015 | Default
We hope you are inspired by the following story of a family who received help through MortgageKeeper and is now back on the path to financial sustainability.
Established in 2005, MortgageKeeper helps consumers locate local services to assist them with daily financial challenges. With over 7,000 resources in all 50 states, MK makes over 1 million referrals per year. Consumers need to know where to turn to find help from reputable organizations and MK provides the tools to do so. From help with paying utility bills, student loan debt, food assistance, prescription drug costs, and employment resources, MK’s easy to use applications are making a difference in consumer’s lives.
THE CASE STUDY
THE CHALLENGE
A hard working single mom loses her health and her job. She is two months behind on her mortgage payments. She wonders: will I lose my home too?
THE SITUATION
“Maria” called a free foreclosure counseling hotline, Money Management International, for assistance. Counselor Cindy Lightfoot did a thorough assessment of her client’s credit, budget and expenses, which included a delinquent mortgage and costly medications.
Extremely nervous about her mounting debt, Maria was smoking more to ease her anxiety and said she felt hopeless and helpless. She was convinced she and her family would be evicted from their home of 28 years in Cleveland, MS.
HOW MK DESKTOP HELPED
Using MK’s data, counselor Cindy found client Maria several local resources in Bolivar County, including food assistance and help paying her heating and utility bills. A local agency also made necessary repairs to her home, including a new roof and replacing faulty wiring.
Using the money savings tips and referrals provided by MK, Maria is also receiving medical assistance for her entire family, has located money-savings discounts on prescription medications, and stopped smoking as well.
Once four months behind on her mortgage, Maria’s modification is secured. She praises Cindy for working tirelessly with her lender to secure her a loan modification, reducing her monthly mortgage payments from $333 to $208 a month.
“My counselor and all the referrals have changed my life, and given me and my family a safe place to call home,” said Maria. “I am forever grateful.”
by SpringFour | Nov, 13, 2014 | Default
MKDesktop will Increase HUD Non-profit Counselor Capacity
DOWNERS GROVE, IL (Nov 10, 2014): MortgageKeeper Referral Services, Inc. announced today an agreement with Wells Fargo to provide HUD-approved national non-profits and their counselors with access to MKDesktop, thereby more easily connecting struggling homeowners and renters to local assistance services.
Numerous HUD approved agencies already subscribe to MKDesktop, with more than 1,000 counselors using it to make over 100,000 referrals to their clients every month. Through this agreement the number of counselors using MKDesktop is expected to double. Referrals to local assistance organizations help with food, utility, prescription, child care, and home repair costs, all of which contribute to a balanced household budget and make homeowners more likely to qualify for a loan workout.
Wells Fargo’s financial support will make the MKDesktop application available to nearly all non-profit housing counseling agencies and increase the likelihood that distressed homeowners and renters will receive direction to local non-profit and government agencies that are prepared to assist. The agreement provides counselors with access to MortgageKeeper’s proprietary database of more than 7,500 best-in-class nonprofit and government services. Counselors can type in their client’s ZIP Code, and then choose from 20 different assistance service categories.
“While Wells Fargo’s delinquency and foreclosure rates consistently trend significantly better than the industry average, this commitment to support nonprofits with MKDesktop is just another example of how they go to great lengths to help all homeowners – even when they are not their own customers,” said Rochelle Nawrocki Gorey, president of MortgageKeeper. “With the addition of MKDesktop, more counselors will have critical tools that will result in them better assisting homeowners to avoid foreclosure.”
To date HomeFree USA, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD), National Council of La Raza, National Foundation for Credit Counseling, the Housing Partnership Network, and NeighborWorks America have subscribed to MKDesktop through this initiative, joining long-term users the Homeownership Preservation Foundation, Money Management International, ClearPoint, GreenPath, Springboard, Navicore (formerly Novadebt), and CCCS of San Francisco.
About MortgageKeeper Referral Services: MortgageKeeper Referral Services is the only platform dedicated to connecting consumers to best-in-class local resources. Trusted by top servicers, and housing and creditcounseling agencies, MK applications power more than 4,000 referrals a day throughout the United States. Consumers in financial distress with access to local resources have additional opportunities to cure default, benefiting the homeowner, servicer, and investor. For more information about MKDesktop and MKDirect, including an online demonstration, please visit MortgageKeeper.com.
by SpringFour | Nov, 8, 2013 | Default
This week we have part two of our interview with Larry L. Gilmore, president of the Student Loan Alliance (SLA). Larry is an expert on both the mortgage and student loan crises, and joined us last week for part one of this interview.
What is your advice to someone who can’t pay their student loans on time?
Seek immediate help.
There are a number of for profit debt management companies charging high fees to assist borrowers with workout options. While a number of these services are free, it is complicated to sort out what repayment options you qualify for, the best option for you, and completing the application. I strongly encourage they visit studentloanhelp.org, complete the online questionnaire, register, and get connected to a certified consumer credit counseling agency.
There seem to be the same players with student loans are there are with housing loans: the government, the servicers, and the borrowers. Are there strategies for each that would avert a student loan crisis?
The Government – More assertively incorporating the role of a 3rd party counseling organization to provide objective assistance. Similar to the mortgage industry foreclosure crisis, the student loan industry could benefit from a federally mandated funding mechanism to pay for counseling sessions (similar to the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Program).
Servicers – aggressively seek partnerships with independent nonprofit counseling agencies that can assist in increasing borrower contact, qualify borrowers for available options, and assist in improving overall performance. Private servicers need to increase and make transparent what available workout options exist and provide a public contact list for escalation specifically for use by trusted 3rd party counselors.
Borrowers – Again, there are a number of for profit debt management companies charging high fees to assist borrowers with workout options. While a number of these services are free, it is complicated to sort out. strongly encourage they visit www.studentloanhelp.org, complete the online questionnaire, register, and get connected to a certified consumer credit counseling agency.
Recent Comments