My story:

I have a 1st mortgage through Saxon currently about $70K. Through a series of mishaps this summer (some my fault, some not), I am currently 3 months behind and have been notified of foreclosure proceedings, with a court date of 11/13 and a sale date of 12/8 (Merry Christmas, huh?). Last month I was contacted by Titanium Solutions, a company that is used by Saxon and other mortgage lenders to try other solutions to foreclosure. I was leery at first if this company was legit as I have heard of scams where the "helping company" took your money and split and you the lendee was left holding the bag and out on the street. But upfront Titanium stated that they would not solicit or could not accept any fees or payments. I met with their local representative (who is also a real estate agent) and she took my financial info, paystubs, bank statements, etc. and sent them to their home office who in turn sends them to Saxon along with a hardship letter and my proposed solution. After receivng the foreclosure letters, I contacted Titanium and we sat down together and called Saxon to give them the financial info over the phone. (They haven't received the paperwork from Titanium yet). After this meeting, I now feel that Titanium is in fact legit and not a scam. I will call Saxon next week to see if they got my paperwork and if they will accept my proposal, basically to extend my loan 6 months at the end and bring everything current. (I think they refer to that as special forebearance). So that's where I stand. Anyone else faced a similiar situation? (Note: as a back-up plan in case Saxon balks, I will file Ch. 13 BK and bring my mortgage current that way.)

wasnt it you i told that titanium is legit. they dont charge for their services at all

It may have been. Sorry I sometimes suffer from brainf**ts. I also am somewhat of a doubting Thomas until I see it for myself.

Hallelujah!!! Success at last! Since my last post, I was beginning to fear that my mortgage lender, Saxon, wasn't really wanting me to stay in my home. After allowing plenty of time for my financial paperwork to get to them, I called and was told my account was assigned to a negotiator. (Hmmm, wasn't that one of the characters from "The Godfather"?) I was given the direct extension to them. But after calling every day for a week and being connected to their voicemail, they never returned my call. Seeing as how my court date is Mon. the 17th, I was at my wit's end. So I called my rep with Titanium Solutions to see if she could help get through to them. At first she said she didn't feel that there was any more they could do. However, she called back later and said that her home office told her to try to contact Saxon one more time and she would call me if she were successful. After several hours of no contact, she called me back and said she had spoken directly to my negotiator and lo and behold they accepted my solution. All past due payments, late fees and other charges would be added to the end of my loan, PLUS my next payment would not be due until Jan. 1st. This gives us time to catch up all other bills, get another vehicle (mine bit the dust) and have a decent Christmas. They are sending the loan modification papers to us and the attorneys who were foreclosing. And, once I receive our copy, I will contact the lawyers to make sure that they received theirs also and that they have cancelled my day in court. So, apparently, all's well that ends well. We still have a lot of financial hills to climb, and BK is still a possiblilty (in fact, a likelihood), but we aren't being booted out on the street for now. And once we catch up the second mortgage, we could proceed with Ch. 7 if we do go that route. So it does pay to ask.

Congratulations! That is great news. You're absolutely right, it does pay to ask.

Further foreclosure update: Things may not be going as well as first thought. I finally spoke with my lender directly. They stated that yes, they had agreed to a loan modification, but I would have around $980 due by yesterday and the first regular payment Jan. 1 at my regular rate. Good enough, I thought. They said they were sending me the modification papers and were postponing the sale date for 60 days to allow the modification time to be completed. They were also sending the trustee a fax instructing them to postpone the sale. As of today, I have not received the first thing from the lender. I did call the clerk of court to see if they had received the request of postponement from the trustee. They have not. I then called the trustee and they said yes, they had received the postponement request from the lender. When I informed them that they clerk had not been notified, they said they would do the postponement when they go to the courthouse for the sale, and to call them with the new date after the 8th. So red lights and alarm bells began going off. Why would the trustee not just fax the request to the clerk to postpone the sale? I realize they probably have other sales that day, but still... I feel totally uncomfortable and uneasy with this set-up. So as not to take any chances, I have an appt. with a BK attorney and will proceed with a 13. The attorney has said if they come through with the mod anyway, it will be that much less I will have on my BK payment. (He said it will probably only be his fees, the BK trustee's fee, and any arrearages on the mortgages anyway, around $140/mo. with arrearages, and $63/mo. without.)

OK, today was the original sale date. My attorney called the clerk of court this afternoon and the sale was in fact put on hold, but not dismissed. So we don't have to rush with the emergency BK petition. He said a new sale date was not mentioned but he doesn't want to take any chances. He also said that they would have to give me sufficient notice if they decide to reschedule the sale. (Sidebar: does anyone that is familiar with NC foreclosure laws happen to know how long that is?) Now if they still offer to modifiy the loan and put all arrearages on the end of the loan, we'll be that much better off, as our ch. 13 payment will be that much less. So we're safe for now. Getting kicked out on the street here at Christmas would really suck!

Finally got the loan modification papers today. Some deal! The only thing they're doing is taking all arrearages and making them a balloon payment at the maturity date. What a crock! Oh well, we have an appointment at the lawyer's office to do our pre-BK credit course, so I'll give them to him and let him handle it. So much for working with your lender.

That sounds to me like a forebearance, not a loan modification.

May very well be, but I'll just turn everything over to the lawyer and let him handle it.