03 Jan Why You Should Not Expect Your Bank to Voluntarily Rewrite Your Loan

If you don't know who Harvard Law School Professor Elizabeth Warren is, you should. She's a plain-speaking champion of the American consumer and a noted authority on bankruptcy law. Jon Stewart recently hosted her as a guest on "The Daily Show." In addition to being...
The US Treasury Department announced today that it recovered $200 Billion of the $700 Billion bailout for financial institutions. Despite popular belief, the Bailout was not a free handout. The money came with strings and the banks want out from under the TARP.
A number of banks have already paid TARP money back. One of the largest recipients, Bank of America, has announced efforts to raise private money to pay back the government funds.
So the news outlets are touting that taxpayers will have to foot less of the bill than originally planned. However, the news media has it all backward.
A mortgage lender which received TARP funds, or which voluntarily signed up for President Obama's HAMP program, must suspend a foreclosure action while a borrower's mortgage modification application is pending. That's good news. HAMP is the modification program of the Home Affordable Plan. (HARP is the...