OK, you get in your car, drive through the neighborhood and what do you see? For Sale signs everywhere. It's a common scene - an all too familiar backdrop that floods our communities.
The current mortgage crisis has had a great impact on our finances, our families and our communities. Many African-Americans are losing their homes to foreclosures at alarming rates. Whose to blame?
Is it poor planning, lack of knowledge or the work of vicious mortgage lenders that are out to get us?
Just for the record, mortgage lenders aren't in the business of taking homes. They want to sell them. Every time a home goes into foreclosure, it costs them money ... BIG Money.
No, I'm not a real estate agent or a lender, I'm just a homeowner looking to change the landscape of her community. We have a rich heritage and legacy of owning land and property. What's happened? Why aren't we preserving our legacy of homeownership?
I may not have all the answers but I do have some tips on how we can get out of this mess.
Here are some ways you can save your home from foreclosure:
Negotitiate: If you are behind in your payments, reach out to your mortgage assistance department. Explain your situation and they should be able to set-up a payment plan wih you. And if th still give you a hard time, tell them you want to speak to someone about Project Lifeline and your options as the lender. (That'll get them to wise up!)
Documentation Beats Conversation: After you have made plans with your lender to make gradual payments, then you need to put it in writing. Write a letter stating your situation and the agreement made and drop it in the mail. This is just another form of protection.
Get Your Hustle On: Now you need to get a part time job and eat beans and franks for the next few months in order to make payments on time. With everything in life there are sacrifices. No pain, no gain! Make it happen.
And now you are halfway home!!!! :)
That's my opinion, what's yours?
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