This is a question that more and more people are asking due to the sub prime fiasco and the uncertainty of the market overall.

There is nothing scarier than knowing that you cannot afford to pay your mortgage. But you can take heart in the fact that there are a lot of people who are in the same boat and just as many who have been there and have found their way out of the problem and still own their home.

When You Can't Pay

The worst thing that you can do when you cannot make your mortgage payment is to deny the problem to yourself, your spouse, or your mortgage company.

Most of them just avoid the topic altogether and do their best not to think about it, but this doesn't work. While it may make you feel better in the short term it will make the situation worse later on down the road.

When you can't make your payment you should pay what you can. Many people get caught in the mindset that if they can't they shouldn't bother paying any of it. This isn't true!

Your lender would much rather get three fourth of your normal payment than nothing at all, and at least this shows that you are attempting to keep your loan current. If you simply blow off the payment altogether it looks as though you aren't taking your obligation seriously enough and the lender becomes more concerned.

If you cannot give anything then you should pick up the phone and call right away. Many times the company just wants to know what you will be able to give and when. Sometimes it is simply a matter of setting up a plan and following it.

Even if you pay just $100 you may be good to go for a while, as long as you pay it when you say you will. The idea is to let your financing entity know that you are serious about bringing your account current you just cannot do it all at once.

Be honest if you need help. Many times a mortgage company or lender will be willing to work with you to help you lower your payments so you can afford them.

There are many options that are available to you and when you are honest about the position you are in they will be able to offer you the help that you need.

The worst thing that you can do is fail to communicate with the company about what is going on. When the phone rings, take their call and respond to any mailings.

When you fail to make payment and you don't respond to attempts at communication, you can bet that when you are 90 days behind that the foreclosure process will begin.

Contrary to popular belief, banks don't like to foreclose on homes. So work with them and see if you can keep your home. It may take some time and a lot of effort, but you can do it.