Stop Your Foreclosure with a Forbearance Plan

Forbearance plans (also known as workout plans), are an agreement a borrower makes with the foreclosing lender to repay the arrears (the amount of money you are behind).

Typically, the lender wants one-third to one-half of the arrears as an initial payment. The balance of the arrears is paid back over the next six to eighteen months, depending on the cooperativeness of the lender.

Let's look at an example. A homeowner has arrears of $15,000. They call their lender, and learn that the terms of the forebearance plan would be one-third of the arrears as an initial payment, with the balance paid over 18 months. This would mean that the homeowner would need to come up with $5,000 immediately. Then, for the next twelve months, the homeowner would pay their normal mortgage payment, AND an additional payment of $555 each month.

For most homeowners, this extra burden is simply out of the question. First of all, they were unable to make their normal payments for the previous 4-6 months, so how can they be expected to come up with a large chunk of money, as well as make timely monthly payments which have now increased by 30-50%?

In reality, the lenders know that the vast majority of borrowers who enter into forbearance plans do not make the necessary payments and eventually have their house foreclosed. It appears that in many situations the lender (with total knowledge that the forebearance plan is simply unworkable for the borrower) is simply trying to get as much cash out of the borrower before they will inevitably foreclose.

Unfortunately, most homeowners had to borrow from their 401(k) or from their family or friends to make the initial payment. Then, when they inevitably go to foreclosure, they not only have lost their house, but can't repay the money they borrowed to initiate the forebearance plan.

However, to be clear, some homeowners can make it work. We can assist you in setting up a forbearance plan with your lender.

Call WASHFA today for help creating a forbearance plan.

Call us today on one of our local, toll-free numbers, and tell us about your situation. We have helped hundreds of Washington State homeowners solve their foreclosure situation once and for all.

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