Local Mortgage Modification Company does good for Scammed Homeowner

RANCHO MIRAGE, CA

When Tanya Urisabel gave an Orange County loan modification company $3,000 to help her reduce her monthly mortgage payment, she believed she was going to save money on her payment and her home from imminent foreclosure. She and her husband, Palemon, had no idea that they would lose their money and nearly lose the home never to hear from these scammers again. She turned to a local TV station and her story appeared in the news, as hundreds of others have, warning the public of loan modification scammers. Ira Meltzer of Mortgage-Debt Solutions, a locally-owned and managed mortgage loan modification company, saw the news and offered to help at no charge. “When we heard Tanya’s story, we knew we had to be the good guys and help. As an attorney-based mortgage modification company, we hear from several clients per week of how they were scammed or nearly scammed by shady people offering to save their homes,” he says. Mr. Meltzer’s company charges a retainer to provide a service to customers using legal means to modify mortgage contracts. “This is the single largest financial contract most of us will sign in our lives. You need to have a lawyer and local negotiators who will work for your benefit and help reduce your mortgage payments.”

The company has achieved an average of 41% savings to homeowners who have retained it to modify their mortgages. It has documented saving clients an average of $934 dollars per month on all successful loan modifications negotiated in the past twelve months. “That’s an average of $11,208 annually per client that our team at Mortgage Debt Solutions has been able to negotiate thus far,” states Meltzer. This was achieved before the Obama Administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, through legal means and strong negotiations with lenders who service some of the mortgages of homeowners who have hired the company to help them find relief. Not just anyone can negotiate a mortgage loan modification. It takes a lot of time and patience as the process can be frustrating for most people.

Since the mortgage meltdown, several arrests have been made in Southern California of people claiming to be able to help save one’s home. “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” says Meltzer. “You have to be extra careful with whom you deal when it comes to your home mortgage, especially if you are more than a couple of payments behind.”

Things to look for when vetting a company that says they can modify your mortgage are:

1. Make sure that they have a posted business license;

2. When you go to their office, make sure that it is a real office and not some condo or shared office;

3. Ask questions about how they work and who the real estate attorney is that is part of the firm;

4. If you decide to retain the company, do not pay all of the fee upfront, ask for terms to pay as they go through the process. A reputable firm will have a schedule of fees and explanation of steps.

5. Read every document very carefully and ensure that they give you copies and receipts for everything you sign and pay.

Lenders have been open and willing to deal with the team at Mortgage Debt Solutions as the company goes into the negotiation process already knowing what is needed to present to the lender and after having reviewed the mortgage contract of a particular lender. The company is in the process of helping nearly 200 homeowners modify their mortgages this month. There are several more in line to receive consultation on their situation. As home values continue to decline and unemployment continues to rise, mortgage relief becomes more valuable to homeowners.

As for the Urisabels, their mortgage was reduced from $1,896 to $1,448, a nearly $450 monthly savings. Their interest rate was reduced from 6.875% to 4.75% for three years and 5.25% for the balance of the contract. “We are so grateful for what they did for us,” states Tanya Urisabel. “I don’t know what we would have done without their help.”