CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES
WRONG
TURN
phone interview. The monthly
payments dropped dramatically, to $786 a month from about
$1,400 a month.
But though Solis’s interest
rate was lowered significantly,
nothing was done to reduce the
balance of what she owed on the
mortgage. She is making payments on a $202,000 mortgage. The house is now worth
$93,000, according to Zillow, an
online real estate website.
In 2014, Solis’ payments will
HUFFINGTON
11.04.12
begin to go back up again under
the terms of her modification,
unless Bank of America, which
acquired First Franklin, restructures the loan again.
The house is also infested
by termites.
So the family faces a quandary. Do they invest thousands
of dollars to repair a home they
may not be able to afford to keep
in a few years? And does it make
sense to keep paying a mortgage
when they have little hope of
building equity?
“We are blessed,” Solis said.
“But also trapped.”
Federal
Housing
Finance
Agency