A place to call home is essential in life. Whether you rent or own, it is where you relax, refresh, and recharge.
Sometimes financial challenges may lead to falling behind on your monthly mortgage or rent. While it can be confusing to understand your options, remember you are not alone.
In this second part of our conversation with the experts, we asked a series of questions to just a few of our counselors, including:
Greg Nelson, an experienced professional with seven years of experience. Who works out of 995Hope’s Las Vegas, Nevada location.
Paul Flynn, who has more than 20 years of mortgage industry experience and his background is primarily focused on foreclosure prevention.
Richard Schroeder, with 20+ plus years of experience as an educator and counselor.
Question: Can I trust my counselor and that my information will be safe?
Paul: “We are HUD-certified, non-profit agencies serving as an advocate with the callers’ best interest in mind. Experts possess the knowledge to identify housing issues, share referrals and resources, as well as provide realistic options while recognizing and avoiding scams and discrimination. Helping the client create a budget that supports their mortgage and other expenses is the common goal between borrower and servicer. HUD counselors have no skin in the game.”
Richard: “Our one and only job is to help,” says Richard. “The wellbeing of our callers and helping them reach their goal, whether it is saving their home, refinancing their home, going through a budget and financial session to make sure they are doing the right things financially or just answering simple questions.”
Paul: “A recent success story was simply connecting the client to their servicer via conference call, so she could exit forbearance gracefully, defer the forgone amount to the end of the loan and resume regular payments on her Freddie Mac mortgage. The client had been trying in vain for months to exit forbearance, during the pandemic, as well as changing servicers. Her husband lost his job due to Covid 19, but has since returned to work, hence, hardship ended. Servicer verbally confirmed deferral of the forgone amount with scheduled payments ongoing to begin next month. The client was so relieved, because she had received conflicting information online and on the phone.”
Richard: “To be completely honest, my best success stories are when I pick up the call and have a client struggling or stressed out about their mortgage or losing their home and I am able to bring them a sense of comfort and calm. When I start speaking to them and advise them that there is hope and there are options is the greatest feeling in the world. As I speak with a client and we break down their situation and are able to show them there is hope and you hear it in their voices, there is nothing better than that.”
Greg. “There are many success stories that I could share, but those that stand out the most are where I could comfort the caller by sharing my own personal hardship experiences which helps to reduce their insecurities and signifies that I can relate to what they are going through. This also helps to relieve some of their stress.”
Question: Who are the counselors?
995Hope counselors are individuals like you. We are people who have had our own personal hardship experiences and we can relate to what you are going through. We have often shared this with our clients because we want you to know there is hope and you can turn your situation around.
Paul: “As HUD approved counselors, we have gone through many hours of training and certifications to be well informed about housing options, terminology, budgeting, etc. to make sure we can give clients the best help possible. Many counselors also bring years of personal and professional experience to the calls and are able to combine their experiences with all their training to help clients get through the many difficult situations they may be facing or to just make better housing or financial decisions,” says Paul.
“Our counselors have decades of mortgage and financial industry experience, and are experts at foreclosure prevention,” adds Paul. “Through our certifications and continuous learnings, we are truly the subject matter experts and can provide a wealth of knowledge and resources with unbiased advice to help clients determine the best solutions. HUD counselors are completely unbiased, we only want to help.”
Watch Our Experts Share Their Thoughts
Ready to talk?
When you feel more confident about your situation, you can make informed decisions, whether you are looking for support for common situations such as Alternatives to Foreclosure, Housing Resources, Mortgage Modification Support, Financial Wellness, you are set up for success.
Your first step is to call 995Hope. Get help from experienced professionals.
