Hardship
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With this option, you and your mortgage company agree to temporarily suspend or reduce your monthly mortgage payments for a specific period of time. This option lets you deal with your short-term financial problems by giving you time to get back on your feet and bring your mortgage current.

Forbearance may be an option if you are:

• Behind on your mortgage payments or on the verge of missing payments
• Experiencing a temporary hardship

• Lower or temporarily suspend your monthly payment—giving you time to improve your financial situation and get back on your feet
• Less damaging to your credit score than a foreclosure
• Stay in your home and avoid foreclosure

Forbearance reduces your monthly mortgage payment—or suspends it completely—during the forbearance period. If you qualify for forbearance, you and your mortgage company will discuss the forbearance terms:

• Length of forbearance period,
• Reduced payment amount (if the payment is not suspended), and
• The terms of repayment.

After the forbearance has ended, you will need to repay the amount that was reduced or suspended. However, you are not required to repay the missed amount all at once, though you have that option. Other potential options allow you to make an additional payment each month for a period of time until the past due amounts are repaid (see Repayment Plan), set up a loan modification (see Modification), or defer the payments until later in the loan (see Payment Deferral for Fannie Mae loans or Partial Claim for FHA loans).

Please keep in mind that you will need to speak with a Member Solutions expert to determine what, if any, of these options may be available to you.

With this option, you spread out your past due amount—added on to your current mortgage payments—over several months to bring your mortgage current.

A Repayment Plan may be an option if:

• You are ineligible to refinance
• You are facing a short-term hardship
• You are just a month or two behind on your mortgage payments
• You can now afford your monthly mortgage payment

• Bring your mortgage current and resolve your delinquency
• Catch up on your past due payments over an extended period of time
• Less damaging to your credit score than a foreclosure
• Stay in your home and avoid foreclosure

If you qualify for a Repayment Plan, typically your past-due amount will be spread out over a set time frame (e.g., 3, 6, 9 months) and added on to your existing mortgage payments. Other repayment terms may also be available during the repayment period.

Under this option, you reach an agreement to change the original terms of your mortgage—such as payment amount, length of loan, interest rate, etc. In most cases, when your mortgage is modified, you can reduce your monthly payment to a more affordable amount.

A Modification may be an option if:

• You are ineligible to refinance
• You are facing a long-term hardship
• You are several months behind on your mortgage payments or likely to fall behind soon

• Resolve your delinquency status on your mortgage
• May reduce your monthly mortgage payments to a more affordable amount
• Change the original terms of your mortgage permanently, giving you a new start
• Less damaging to your credit score than a foreclosure
• Stay in your home and avoid foreclosure

A modification involves one or more of the following:

• Changing the mortgage loan type (e.g., changing an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage to a Fixed-Rate Mortgage)
• Extending the term of the mortgage (e.g., from a 30-year term to a 40-year term)
• Reducing the interest rate either temporarily or permanently
• Adding any past-due amounts, such as interest and escrow, to the unpaid principal balance, which is then re-amortized over the new term

This mortgage relief option moves past-due amounts from missed payments to the end of your loan term so you can keep the same monthly payment while bringing your loan to a current status. You must have a Fannie Mae backed loan to qualify for this option.

Payment deferral may be an option if you are:

• Behind on mortgage payments or at the end of a forbearance plan
• Able to resume your regular monthly payments (your financial hardship is resolved)
• Unable to catch up on outstanding balances with a reinstatement or repayment plan

• Resolve your delinquency status on your mortgage
• May reduce your monthly mortgage payments to a more affordable amount
• Change the original terms of your mortgage permanently, giving you a new start
• Less damaging to your credit score than a foreclosure
• Stay in your home and avoid foreclosure

• You must contact our Member Solutions Team to see if you are eligible
• Your financial hardship must be resolved, and you must be able to make your regular monthly payments
• Brings your loan to a current status and keeps your principal and interest payment the same (note that escrow payment adjustments for taxes and insurance may affect your total monthly payment)
• Moves past-due amounts to the end of your loan term when they are due with your last mortgage payment or earlier if you sell your home, refinance, or otherwise pay off your loan

This option takes your past due amounts and puts them in a special subordinate lien to be repaid later. You will only repay the junior lien when your mortgage ends, which, for most borrowers, is when you sell your home or refinance your mortgage. You must have an FHA backed loan to qualify for this option.

A Standalone Partial Claim may be an option if you are:

• Behind on mortgage payments or at the end of a forbearance plan
• Able to resume your regular monthly payments (your financial hardship is resolved)
• Unable to catch up on outstanding balances with a reinstatement or repayment plan

• Bring your mortgage current immediately
• Keep your monthly principal and interest payment the same
• Junior lien does not accrue interest
• A better option than foreclosure
• Stay in your home and avoid foreclosure

• You must contact our Member Solutions Team to see if you are eligible
• Your financial hardship must be resolved, and you must be able to make your regular monthly payments
• Brings your loan to a current status and keeps your principal and interest payment the same (note that escrow payment adjustments for taxes and insurance may affect your total monthly payment)
• Takes past-due amounts and puts them in a special subordinate lien to be repaid when your mortgage ends or earlier if you sell your home, refinance, or otherwise pay off your loan