Making Ends Meet on Your Mortgage

Unless you've won the lottery or don't mind renting while you save up enough money to fully pay for your home in cash, chances are good that you're going to need a mortgage in order to become a homeowner. Just like you lose your car when you can't make the payments, you can lose your home if you're unable to pay the mortgage. But losing your car doesn't hurt nearly as much as losing your home. So what do you do if you do find yourself struggling to pay your mortgage? Call up Maryland movers to help you move out or seek out some financial help?

Know Your Mortgage

Before you even agree to the terms of a mortgage you'll want to know just what it is that you're getting into for the next several years. Examples of different types of mortgages include:

• Fixed rate mortgages where your rates will never change as long as you're paying the mortgage off

• Adjustable rate mortgages where your rates will change from time to time while you're paying the loan off

• Hybrid adjustable rate mortgages where you'll have unchanging payments for a several years before your rates start to adjust.

Before you ever agree to the terms of a mortgage, make sure that you know exactly what kind you have and ask if there are any extra taxes or insurance requirements that you need to be aware of. Thing long-term and short-term when it comes to your finances and be honest with yourself when it comes to being able to pay back your mortgage.

While you're looking over the terms of your loan, you'll also want to ask about prepayment penalties and refinancing options.

Falling Behind

If you're having difficulty making payments on your mortgage or if you even think that you might start having difficulty making them, get in touch with your loan officer as soon as you can so that you can discuss your options. You can trust that you aren't the first person to get behind on your payments, so loan services will surely have contingency plans set up so that you can keep your home while catching up on your payments.

You might qualify for a loan modification depending on how much you owe on your first mortgage, when you got your mortgage and how much percentage of your current gross income your mortgage payments are. Be prepared to show documentation to your loan officer.

There are also several foreclosure preventions options that are available to you. If your money problems are only temporary, you can talk to your loan officer about reinstatement, which is when you'll pay the past due amount as well as any late fees by an agreed upon date. If you've only missed a few payments, then ask about a repayment plan where you'll have a certain amount of time to pay the past due amount by dividing that amount between your regular upcoming payments. It's also possible that you can get your payments either suspended or reduced for a certain period of time before you start making payments again in addition to a lump sum payment.

Don't automatically panic and call Maryland movers if you ever fall behind on your mortgage. Get in touch with your loan officer and start looking at your finances to see what you can do.