Facing the Mortgage Crisis: Tampa Bay

Irene Maher and Al Reuchel want to connect you to valuable resources to save your home. Feel free to send us your stories and we’ll post them on the website. This is our community too. We’re in this together.

Attorney General Bill McCollum and Florida’s Interagency Mortgage Fraud Task Force invite homeowners to attend a free, Tampa town hall meeting. Get information from and speak directly with government representatives, local lawyers, and other community resources about all of these concerns and more.
 

Reserve your seat: call toll-free 877-385-1621.
Doors will open at 8:30 AM and parking is free. The event is open to members of the media.

When: Saturday, August 15 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Where: Stetson University Law School, 1700 North Tampa Street, Tampa, FL

What order should you pay your bills? First, mortgage, then car payment, then credit cards, then any medical bills. Your mortgage, car payment and credit cards have interest charges that will apply immediately if you miss a payment, so they should always be first.

It is your responsibility to be an informed consumer and to know what you are signing. If you dont understand what you are being asked to sign or are not comfortable with the terms of any loan document, don’t sign the documents and seek help from a trusted community resource to understand what they say.

You need to be proactive if you are dealing with a mortgage problem or a possible foreclosure. It may be intimidating, so seek the help of a housing counselor to help you through the process. They can help you get in touch with the loss mitigation department, who has the power to offer you a long term solution.

A forbearance agreement is an agreement reached between you and your lender to alter your payment schedule, change the amount of your payment, or in rare cases an agreement to allow you to skip a payment. Regardless of the agreement reached, always be sure to get a document in writing, and be sure it clearly spells out what was decided.