What is Home Loan Modification?

A home loan modification can actually be a very important tool in reorganizing your finances, and may help you to make better economic decisions in your budget.

A home loan modification is basically a way for you to reorganize your home loan, and the specific parameters surrounding your loan (the terms of the loan, minimum payments etc). This is often done in times of extreme financial difficulty, since the reorganization of a loan is most commonly done in order to make home mortgage payments more affordable for homeowners. When a lender realizes that the person who has borrowed the money from them is currently unable to make the monthly payments on their account, they will open up discussion for a home loan modification. This is done to ensure that the borrower continues making payments, and does not default on the loan.

In simplistic terms, the bank needs to gain back any money that has been lent to a borrower, plus interest. A borrower needs to keep possession of their home, and continue making monthly mortgage payments. As you can see, in many cases, it is in the best interest of both parties involved to begin discussing possible home loan modification procedures.

A lender has several options when dealing with a delinquent home loan account. They may simply take the significant financial hit of a lost loan, attempt to repossess the property (foreclosure), hire a collection agency, wait for the borrower to declare bankruptcy, or begin looking into a home loan modification process. As you can tell, home loan modification is the first, and most desirable choice for a bank, prior to a foreclosure.

However, not everyone can be approved for a home loan modification from their lender. In order to justify making significant changes to a loan, a lender will have to obtain substantial evidence that this is the most beneficial financial option. In order to do this, the borrower will have to present many different documents that outline their current financial situation. Upon receipt of these documents, the lender may then restructure the loan to fit into the borrower's monthly budget. If this is done currently, it will result in a financial agreement that is in the best interests of both the lender and the borrower.