I know I said that I would write more about real estate property assessments. I promise I will get to that....FYI the Lake County assessments have been published and sent to homeowners. You have less than 30 days to appeal your assessment. Today's topic really strikes a chord with me....read on...
Trying to Refinance
The Federal government recently announced a program (HARP) that provide some relief for home owners that have paid their mortgages regularly. This is exactly what many home owners today want and need. It is a “reward” for staying the course and doing the right thing, even though your home value has declined and you are very likely upside down, or close to it. Basically home owners will be allowed to refinance with much lower interest rates without getting an appraisal, as long as they have good credit and are current on their mortgage.
The problem is that this program only applies to Freddie and Fannie mortgages. So what about all of the other home owners who have also stayed the course and continued to pay their mortgage and home equity loans in the face of falling prices. Many people would love to refinance and take advantage of today's incredible rates, but they can’t get approved because their loan-to-value (LTV) is over 95% or possibly worse (and still sliding). Many of these people are struggling to make ends meet. If they could refinance the monthly savings would give them much needed breathing room.
I don’t know how many people are in this situation, but I am sure that it is huge. I'd love to start a grass roots campaign to lobby the government to take action to encourage the banks to reward those of us who have been playing by the rules!! If a significant number of people could save some real $$ on their mortgages it would be a boost to the economy. These people could use it to purchase goods and services, pay off other debts, go on vacations, or maybe build up their savings so they have a safety net once again. I realize that the banks will probably lobby against this because they say that they'll lose money on this scenario. I think that in the long run this is better option for the banks than strategic defaults, short sales, foreclosures and bankruptcy…don’t you?
I confess that I am among the many homeowners in this predicament. So this topic is near and dear to me. If you have any ideas on how we can get some attention in Washington D.C. on this topic, let me know...I'm all ears. Feel free to repost this blog - as long as you give me credit for the original content, that is fine with me...
(FYI, photos are from my recent trip to historic Galena, IL)
Thanks for reading!
nsk
Nancy S. Karp
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