by Joshua Talayka

Created on: June 09, 2009

Four Things You Should Know if You're in Default on your mortgage, or about to be.

Everyday more and more Americans are at risk of default on their mortgage, and simply do not know what they can do. You've tried contacting your lender via the (800) numbers on your bill to explain that you are not going to be able to make your payments for much longer, and want to know if there is any help.

Instead of getting help, you found yourself in an endless loop on their automated system. Eventually (if you're lucky) you were able to reach a live person who then transferred you to another, who transferred you to another, and so on, while remaining on hold for twenty plus minutes between each person. Finally, the last person you speak with tells you there is nothing they can do, and that you should try back once you're behind

If you haven't already had the experience described above, here are some things you should know before going down that road

1. No good deed goes unpunished

When it comes to getting help with your mortgage, the majority of lender's will not even talk to you as long as you're continuing to make your payments. You're mortgage company is in the business of getting as much money out of you as possible, and until you can no longer afford to make your current payment, chances are they will not want to begin reducing it

After you're finally behind, loan modification still may not be available to you. First of all, there is typically a 15-day grace period before your lender considers your payment late. After this grace period expires, your account will then go into collections. You will begin to get hounded with phone calls, and every number you call eventually will just forward you into the collections department. This department's sole job is to get money out of you. They may even tell you they may consider modifying your loan if you bring it current. The truth is that once you do bring you account current, the process only starts again.

Once you become about 60 days delinquent (60 days from the end of the grace period), your account will then be sent to the loss mitigation department (sometimes called Home Retention). This will be the first time you will have a chance to talk to someone who has any authority to help you. Your file will be assigned to a loss-mitigation officer who will then find out from you if you would like to keep your home or sell it.

2. You have better odds at the casino than you do in getting your loan

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