“Dear Steve,

I have a townhouse that I purchased in 2007 for my daughter & grandson to live in. She has not been able to pay rent for 6 months therefore I have not been able to pay the mortgage. This would not have been a problem a few years ago but my husband had a stroke several years ago and cannot work. I am the sole breadwinner. I have tried for a modification several times but I make too much money.

I have received calls from people saying they are w/a law firm or some company that can help me get a loan modification. They say they have contacts to B of A that I don’t have and can get the loan mod for me for a fee of course. Is this possible or another scam?

Margarfet”

The Answer

Dear Margarfet,

You are much better off calling your lender directly and seeing if you are even eligible for a loan. Lenders are not required to modify a loan and since it is not an owner occupied property to begin with you may simply not be eligible.

Paying someone else is not going to change that.

Call Bank of America directly and talk with them before you spend any money. Additionally you can call and talk to a HUD Housing Counselor for free about modification potentials.

Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.

Big Hug!

Get Out of Debt Guy – Twitter, G+, Facebook

If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form.