by SpringFour | Mar, 7, 2013 | Default
According to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, more than 50,000 homeless people are in NYC shelters on any given night. But rather than fitting the stereotype of older men, nearly half of these are children (1% of the city’s youth). For the first time since 1987, the average homeless family is staying in a shelter for more than a year.
Now homelessness in New York is, sadly, nothing new. But in the words of the article, ” it has become an escalating crisis in recent years amid a chronic shortage of affordable housing and an unemployment rate higher than state and national levels.” And New York is not alone. Other U.S. cities have seen their homeless numbers increase, creating a national trend.
Here at MortgageKeeper, we’ve seen a gradual uptick in the searches for “basic need” services. Counselors and individuals have made food assistance and affordable housing very popular in our list of 20+ categories.
It’s not a trend we love to see.
As the economic stall in the United States continue, those hardest hit will need more and more of the basics until they can get back on their feet. Here at MK, we continue to make sure that our data provides the best information possible to those who desperately need it.
by SpringFour | Feb, 11, 2013 | Default
We read with interest The Wall Street Journal’s recent article on Fifth Third Bancorp. Seems that the enterprising folks at Fifth Third Bank are expanding a job coaching program that offers training for homeowners who have fallen behind on their payments. It specifically targets delinquent homeowners who have lost their job or had a significant drop in their income.
The tiny pilot program was quite a success. Eleven of the 28 participants found jobs after 6 months. Best of all, none of the participants were foreclosed upon, although Fifth Third maintains that they kept “the foreclosure clock” running.
Here at MortgageKeeper, our data consistently points to the need struggling homeowners have for job assistance. It is consistently one of the top three needs of folks who don’t know how they will make their next mortgage payment. To paraphrase the old saying: Giving a homeowner a loan modification will help decrease his payments, but teaching a homeowner to find stable employment will help them never to be delinquent again.
MortgageKeeper has many mortgage servicer clients who provide employment and other support to their borrowers, using our products to help delinquent homeowners get to the root of their financial problems and find a way to make their financial picture whole again. We look forward to hearing more of Fifth Third’s successful program
by SpringFour | Jan, 29, 2013 | Default
A childhood friend of mine recently posted the following on Facebook:
“I was listening to NPR’s Marketplace weekend show, and there was a piece on renting versus buying a home. The generation after ours has seen how the housing bubble burst, and they’re tending to rent with no plans to ever buy a house/condo. Any opinions? As for us, we bought our house at the height of the bubble and then watched it lose almost $30K in value in one year. We’re slowly gaining equity again, but we certainly didn’t expect this to happen.”
She has racked up 23 comments and counting. The opinions are all over the board:
A responsible landlord is like gold!”
I too bought at the height of the bubble and over the last few years I’ve lost $50K in value. I wish I had rented instead. I love the flexibility of renting. Owning is an elaborate set of leg irons.”
“…we’ve watched [our house] lose almost a third of its “value”. But, the thought of ever renting from someone again—bleah.”
We have been very hesitant to buy. I’m sure my parents were in their 2nd home when they are 30! Real estate doesn’t seem like the “investment” it used to be. Also, our generation moves more and “settles down” later than the preceding generation and owning a home “ties” one down.”
One post cited a calculator from The New York Times to help determine if you should buy or rent. But perhaps this is too big of a question to be determined by a newspaper logarithm.
Did you buy or do you rent? And do you stand by your decision?
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by SpringFour | Jan, 16, 2013 | Default
If you are familiar with MortgageKeeper, you know that we offer 20+ categories where folks can find help to their personal and financial crises. From prescription drugs to property tax, child care to credit counseling, we have it pretty well covered.
That is, except for disaster relief services.
We only began seriously considering this category in the last year or so. But after Hurricane Sandy, it seems like a wise and prudent move to offer our clients a means to refer their callers or online users to the most up to date relief available to them during a crisis.
We’re sure hoping that a disaster relief category gathers a lot of dust. But it will be there if it’s needed.
by SpringFour | Jan, 3, 2013 | Default
We here at MortgageKeeper are jumping on the resolution train. To have a look at getting our finances in order, we welcome Karen Carlson, Director of Education for one of our newest clients, InCharge Debt Solutions, as our guest blogger.
Top Five Money Resolutions for 2013
By Karen Carlson, Director of Education at InCharge Debt Solutions
Looking to shore up your finances this year? Become in charge of your money with resolutions you can take to the bank.
1. Pay off your credit card debt. If you are among the nearly 40% of Americans who carry credit card debt from month to month, it’s time to kick the habit and pay it off. If your total debt is less than 15% of your annual income, you should be able to pay it off in one year. Divide the amount owed by the number of paychecks you receive in a year. Pay your debt payments first, on payday.
2. Build an opportunity fund. Typically called the emergency fund, we like to cast money stashed away ‘just in case’ in a positive light. What opportunities could you take advantage of in 2013 or 2014 if you had money saved? Where could you go? What experiences could you have? Set up direct deposit from your paycheck to your savings account and put
your money where your dreams are in 2013.
3. Stop living paycheck-to-paycheck. What’s worse than working 40 hours a week for 10 years with nothing to show for it? Working 40 hours a week for 20 years with nothing to show for it. In fact, a large percentage of baby boomers have worked the majority of their adult lives and have accumulated little in the way of assets. Paycheck-to-paycheck living will rob you of the ability to save, invest and retire with dignity. Learn how to live with less. Be creative. Draw a line in the sand and find room in your budget this year.
4. Grow Your Income. As the unemployment rate drops, there will be more opportunities to work longer hours or pick up a second job. But recognize that the US job market is in the middle of a dramatic shift, toward jobs that require higher education and greater technological skill. Get educated. Get certified. Improve your income potential and employability, even if it means a temporary pay cut. Consider creating a job by starting a small business.
5. Reach Out When You Need Help. If you’re struggling financially and you need help, all you have to do is ask. Reputable nonprofit organizations are standing by to help you analyze your financial situation, make a budget and illuminate a path to stability. These include InCharge—who also make referrals using the MortgageKeeper data application to find local agencies that can help.
Making a resolution is the first step, but sticking to it can be difficult. Behavior change research shows that successful resolutions are followed by detailed action plans. This means committing to your resolution to writing, breaking it down into small ‘bite-sized’ goals (weekly milestones, for example), and tracking your progress. It’s okay to have a slip-up, but get back on your plan as soon as possible.
Good luck and Happy New Year.
by SpringFour | Dec, 17, 2012 | Default
Ah yes. There’s no place like home for the holidays. Many of us are cautiously optimistic that more struggling homeowners will be able to stay in their homes in 2013.
Why the glass-half-full thoughts? Foreclosure prevention efforts are making their mark. Reports hint that more jobs are out there. Foreclosure starts are at a 71-month low.
What keeps the glass only half full are some stats that give us pause…including some of our own. MortgageKeeper referrals are up–way up–at the end of this year. This is due to several factors, but also shows us that help is still needed. Stats from RealtyTrac show that bank repossessions are on the rise. So perhaps we’ve just been enjoying a foreclosure “holiday” while changes in servicing and foreclosure policies are implemented. As with all statistical information, time will tell if we are all-knowing or all wet.
From all of us at MortgageKeeper, we wish you the very best of holidays, and hope that 2013 brings more relief and assistance for those struggling to keep their homes.
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