Success Stories

James, a truck driver for 28 years, lost his job when he was diagnosed with Hepatitis C and could not get approved for temporary disability payments. With no income, he was in danger of losing his childhood home. James turned to a counselor from the Western Massachusetts Foreclosure Prevention Center for help. The counselor helped him get assistance through the federal government program, “Making Home Affordable,” to prevent foreclosure on his home. With additional help from his congressman, James was approved for disability assistance and was able to catch up on his mortgage payments.


“Ellen” lives in one of the hilltowns and has a mortgage with National Citi Mortgage.  Married with three children, she began to fall behind on her mortgage when her work hours were cut.  She worked out a payment plan with her lender, however the payments were more than she could handle, so she called our hotline for help.  At that point her payments were more than 90 days past due and the lender was no longer accepting payments from her.  We contacted the lender on her behalf with a RESPA letter and requested a true modification plan.  During this waiting period Ellen continued to put the mortgage money aside for when she needed it.  After three months of working together with Ellen and the lender, she received a modification agreement and she now has sufficient funds for the first few payments.


Wanda's situation became difficult when she lost her job.  Although she did not have much outstanding debt, she was still paying high fuel bills from last winter for her home in Orange.  Once her unemployment benefits ran out, she had no way to support her disabled son who lived with her.  She called our hotline and we worked with her to apply for a modification.  Meanwhile, Wanda was successful in finding a new job.  Her new employer submitted a letter to her lender indicating that she was gainfully employed.  The lender (a small, privately owned mortgage company based in Florida) finally agreed to add the two months worth of past due payments to the end of the loan term as part of a modification, and Wanda is now back on track.

 

Yvonne, a single mother with a severely handicapped daughter, lost her job and was facing foreclosure.  She was reluctant to leave her home in Orange because it was handicap accessible and she was obligated to provide for her daughter.  She wanted to apply for a loan modification; however the $500 fee charged at the time by the lender was beyond her means.  Once she found a job, we were able to refer her for some flex funds available from one of our partners in the Center.  These funds covered some of her expenses during the gap time.  Meanwhile her modification was approved and she and her daughter were able to stay in the home.

 

Lisa was severely injured at her job and had to endure multiple surgeries.  Her resulting reduced income did not cover her monthly expenses.  By the time she called our hotline, she was 10 months behind and an auction date for her home had been scheduled.  Because of a dispute in the delinquency status, we were able to refer the case to a legal partner.  The assigned attorney successfully stopped the auction, and the case is currently in court.

 

Dorothy relied on SSI for income, and she fell behind on her mortgage because of last year’s high oil bills.  She had built up some equity in her home, which was financed through a local bank.  The bank attempted to work with her, but they could not offer a better rate than she already had.  After receiving counseling at our Center, Dorothy concluded it made the most sense for her to sell the home and move into affordable housing.

 

Marissa got into difficulty with her mortgage because of increased bills and credit card debt.  She called our hotline for assistance and we helped her to apply for a modification on her loan with her lender.  At that point she owed more than $9,000 in arrears on her fixed rate loan.  After 2 ½ months, her lender approved her modification application, adjusting the monthly payment to a workable amount for the life of the loan.