If you want to get a loan modification approved,

you'll need some basic info to get started. But

what is a loan modification? It's a permanent

change in the loan you have with your lender.

Usually people request a loan modification when

they are suffering a hardship and want to try to

lower their monthly mortgage payments.

Well, how do you get your lender to give you a

loan modification? The first step is to put

together your paperwork. You have to do this

eventually anyways, so get it done. Gather all

the paperwork you need, tax returns, bank

statements, hardship letter, etc. That's the easy

part, now you have to fill out the income and

expense sheet and this is where homeowners make

the most mistakes.

You can find this on many sites around the net,

just google it. Here is where people make the

biggest mistakes. You'd think you should make

it look like you are dirt poor on there, right?

WRONG! If it appears to the bank that you cannot

make your new, lower mortgage payment, why would

they take the time to modify your mortgage? It

will look like you are going to foreclose on your

home either way! Most people put some ridiculous

low amount of income on there and then they get

denied a loan modification.

You have to total all your income and expenses up

and see where you are at. You should be within

a tight little box, somewhere either $150 a month

negative or positive will work. You have to show

the lender your bank statements, so you'll have to

"tell a story" somewhere on the income/expense sheet.

A good place to do this is with food, gas,

insurance costs, etc.

Once you figure this out you can go ahead and call

your lender to see whats up. Ask for the loss

mitigation department. Briefly explain your situation

and they will most likely ask you a few questions.

Just go off the income expense sheet numbers. Trust

me, I did this. I called one person and told them

I was only making $5K a month - Denied! Called right

back and spoke with a different person and said $6,800

a month - "ok, we are going to need to see some

paperwork from you." They'll give you a list of all

the papers they need. You should have most of them

ready, just fax it in. You need to call and verify

that they received the paperwork and also get a phone

number from someone who will handle your file. Do not

try to call the toll free number and connect to a

person who knows your case! The whole process should

take about 2 months to complete.

If you are not on time with your payments, you should

not go at this by yourself. The process can take so

long that if you get denied and then go to seek

professional help, it could be too late! If you are

currently late, it's a wise idea to speak with a

reputable attorney who specializes in real estate

and contract law. They will know if you are a good

candidate for a loan mod and can recommend options

for you.

Remember, the process takes a couple months and you

only get one shot. It's a good idea even if they do

offer you a loan modification (they usually will) to

have an attorney look it over for you. The loss

mitigation departments are trained to preserve the

lenders losses, so they will not just offer you the

best loan modification right off the bat. You have

to be persistent with them! If you have given it a

shot and you didn't get it approved, call a specialist.

They can look at your situation and tell you if they

can get it done for you. I know some people who have

gotten 4% fixed rates and lower on their own. Hang

in there and good luck!