How to prepare for the end of mortgage payment forbearance.

Transcript

Welcome Facebook viewers. My name is Brad Botes. I'm an attorney with the Bond and Botes Law Offices, The Bond and Botes offices are located throughout Alabama throughout Mississippi and we help people with money problems. We we know a lot of you are having a financial issues this last year. It's been tough and we've we've tried to address topics over the last year, year and a half that are important to our clients, our community, people that make having money problems. I'm fortunate today to be joined by one of our attorneys with Bon and Bods, Nick Gays, has been with us now, Nick since 2014, I believe That's right. Welcome. Thanks for joining us today. Yes, sir. Thank for having me. I'm I'm happy to be here. So, folks, we have had a number of episodes over the last several months dealing with the moratorium that have been put in place by our government with respect to to evictions, respect to foreclosures. We've talked about mortgage modifications but we want to talk specifically today about the fact that these foreclosure moratorium are coming to an end very soon In fact, if they're not extended again, the foreclosure moratorium is will be coming to an end at the end of this month. June 30th. So, too far off. and Nick and I are going to talk about what that means. So, let me give you a little bit of background and Nick, Nick, you correct me if I'm wrong but you came to Alabama in 2003, you lived in Greenville, South Carolina before that you came to Alabama as you attend college at the University of Alabama Got your BA in philosophy finished. So, Nick's a smart guy, folks and then you went on and got your law degree also at Alabama started practicing bankruptcy law in 2011 and with us. You know, he's in Florence and in Hay, Alabama since 2014. And we're we're fortunate to have you. and we're going to have a conversation and talk to people about what the end of the foreclosures, forbearance, forbearance, the Nick. Is there anything about your background? I tried to be the the details but anything else you'd like to share with our audience about you and what you do? You got all the pertinent details right there. It's it's a little bit startling to hear that it's already been 10 years that I've been doing this a decade now that I've been doing bankruptcy law It seems like it's been a flash but yeah, ever since the first day I was a lawyer, in the law firm, I've been I've been doing bankruptcy work. Well, I will tell you if you think the first 10 years went fast, I've been doing it for over 30 years now, Nick and it's It does go by quickly. Oh man. But with that time that we've been doing this work, we've been fortunate to have gained a lot of you and I learning things. every day, every day. Well, just just to break down for our viewers. what I want to talk about today are number one, what a mortgage is, you know, we take it for granted We work with mortgages every day. We we know what a mortgage is but we're going to talk about that. We're going to talk about what a foreclosures and how that process works. We have offices in Alabama and Mississippi. The process is fairly similar. Both states We'll talk about why a foreclosure happens and how it happens. and then, we're going to talk about what the end of this forbearance period means for people. Yeah. And and what options people have So, are you ready to get started and dig into this Nick? Yeah, let's go. Let's do it. Alright. Well, great. So, I've done a number of these episodes. We we did one recently with Alabama Legal Services Attorney Holly Rae. We talked about the moratorium. I did one with and we talked about the mortgage modifications but let me give you a chance. Why don't you tell our viewers exactly what a mortgage is, Okay, sure. So, a mortgage basically is a contract giving a company a lender rights in the property that you are buying Most people think of a mortgage is one thing but usually mortgages are actually two. There's a promissory note which is the actual document that obligate you to make payments to the mortgage company and then the mortgage itself is the legal document that says, if you don't make those mortgage payments, then, we the mortgage lender have rights to foreclose on that property. That's really what that really is. where the foreclosure risk in from the mortgage. So, it's it's a protection for the mortgage company that's lending you money. It's it's it's a protection they have. If you don't make your payments, what their recourse is and that recourse in most instances is a foreclosure Tell me exactly. what would lead to a foreclosure based on your experience in the state of Alabama. Generally, the number one thing is is lack of payment. That's always number one. If you, if you read the, you know, the fine print so to speak in the mortgage document, it says, if the payments aren't made on time, that counts as a default and then any default will trigger their ability to foreclose That's the number one reason Also, if you can't get insurance on the home, that can be another reason but primarily, it's falling behind on the monthly payments. and and we should tell our viewers we're bankruptcy attorneys. We won't always say positive things about mortgage service or our mortgage companies but I think we can tell people that the mortgage company does not want to foreclose on your home. They they make money by you making your mortgage payments every month. so that they really don't want to take your home. If avoid it. The foreclosure process though. in both Alabama and Mississippi it is a fast process. You know, you would think somebody's going to take your home. Somebody's going to set your stuff out on the street that there might be some court involvement. There might be a hearing, an opportunity to speak your peace but but Nick, both Alabama and Mississippi non judicial foreclosure states. Can you explain it for our viewers? Just how quickly foreclosures can take place in Alabama and Mississippi have fairly similar laws. So, I know you're licensed in Alabama just how quickly it can take place and how the process works. Sure. Yeah. So and just to clarify non foreclosure which is what we have just for the viewers. that means they don't have to go through the court system. They don't have to sue you or anything like that. It's it's an a process that's that's built into the law and to foreclose. Once you have made a default on that contract and they market it as a account that's going to be foreclosed, they have to notify you and they've gotta give you about 30 days notice there has to be a notice run in the newspaper or or some publication for 3 weeks in a row and then once that's been done, they can go ahead hold the foreclosure sale. So, you won't only have maybe thirty to 45 days. Notice how fast it can go and in that time period can go by very quickly and it's it's surprising. to a lot of our clients that come in and and they may be facing a foreclosure There are some states that have a judicial foreclosure process. For instance, if you're in Florida and in a mortgage servicer wants to foreclose on your home and there is a court proceeding you know, Nick, we find that although the board of servicer will send a notice to you when you're behind on your payments. A lot of our clients, you know, you're behind on your bills, you kind of stick your head in the sand and you're not looking at your mail and and this publication and newspaper, it usually either in the newspaper that nobody reads or in the section of a newspaper that nobody reads. So, there's there's very little notice if you're behind on your mortgage payments the process can happen very quickly. So, it's very, very important for folks to be proactive if if if you're having money problems, if you're unable to make your mortgage payment, you know, That foreclosure is imminent. In most cases. Now, that's kind of changed over the last year, Nick because we have had this period of forbearance is respect to foreclosures. Tell our viewers what the forbearance is and kind of how that's worked over the last year. Sure. Well, the forbearance basically is is legal forgiveness essentially. Well, that's not really the right word. It's it's you to put off some of your mortgage payments to a future date and that was one of the things that, you know, it's a program that Congress has allowed because of this whole COVID Pandemic and the CARE act that was passed. So, you can apply for forbearance with your mortgage company and they will defer some number of months payments. 3 months, 612 and then, you'll have to deal with those payments in the future but for now, you don't have to make your payments with and there's no adverse effect Okay. So folks, the the the period during which you've kind of been excused from making your mortgage payments you know, these mortgage services could not in most cases foreclosed on your home that that's coming to an end. which means if you haven't been making your payments, you need to be prepared. You need to prepared to act are some wonderful modification programs out there. and we did an episode a few weeks back and we talked about these mortgage modifications and and and you you mentioned earlier that been practicing bankruptcy law about 10 years. Well, I was actively practicing back in 2008 2009 when we had the last issue with a big uptick in foreclosures. I will tell you that the mortgage companies seem to have learned since that time. Although, mortgage modifications exist at that point, the the the system didn't work really well and there was just an avalanche of foreclosures. It wasn't good for anybody. There are a lot of empty homes. real estate values went down, even the mortgage companies, they had big inventories of homes. So, the mortgage services have learned and they're trying to make modification programs available. but what we've learned people is even if the modification programs are available, they aren't instantaneous. You need to be proactively trying to modify your mortgage. You need to be in touch with your mortgage company and provide any information they need Derek. As Nick said earlier, you know, while you're doing that, the foreclosure process slowly going forward So, so you need to act soon. I want to say again that Biden voters law officers are offering absolutely free initial consultations right now and we'll do them, you know, by phone. We'll do them by video. We'll do them however you want. We'll do them in the comfort and safety of your home or office. but be proactive. Reach out if you're behind. So, Nick, we do primarily trucks to work and I think the important bankruptcy chapter here for people to be aware of this chapter thirteen bankruptcy. Yeah. if somebody's behind on their mortgage and I haven't yet been able to modify their mortgage Tell folks how chapter thirteen bankruptcy didn't work. So, chapter thirteen, bankruptcy is is sometimes called consolidation. It's all administered by the bankruptcy court but the court allows you to take whatever outstanding debt you have and roll those into a consolidation plan. so you can can do those that same consolidation with any missed mortgage payments. If you've gotten behind on the mortgage and you owe for several months and the mortgage company is demanding that you pay that whole lump sum right away with a chapter You can put that large amount into a payment plan and pay it out over a series of months, a little bit at a time and as long as you follow that plan with the court, you are protected from any kind of foreclosure or negative action from the mortgage company. So, it's it's a plan that's approved by a federal court folks. your mortgage company doesn't have any option. If you're eligible for chapter thirteen and you file a chapter thirteen before the foreclosure sale date, the foreclosure process apps and you're able to propose a plan to catch up with you're behind over time. but the key thing here is for the foreclosures. So, why is that important? Nick? Well, because the foreclosure sale itself has legal importance. once it's sold at that foreclosure auction, that property is not yours anymore. It's it's legally someone else's which means if you file for bankruptcy protection the day after the the bank, will only protect the items and things that are yours and that house isn't yours anymore. So, it's outside of the bankruptcy. You can bring it back in and and and take it back from whoever it was sold to at that foreclosure auction So, so so again, folks. be proactive there. There's a lot of us a lot of us have gotten behind on our bills over the last year. It's nothing to be ashamed about but you want to protect your home. you want to protect your assets to summarize what we're talking about, the mortgage is a lien against your home. when you borrow money to buy your home, your mortgage company to protect themselves. They they take a lien against your home. They have an interest in the property that you end up if you get behind on your payments, the mortgage company can foreclose against your property. That means enforce that lien and take your home from you. Alabama and Mississippi are both non judicial foreclosure states which means that that process through which they take your home is quick It can take place in a month or so and it's it's it's going to vary slightly but it can happen before you know it. So, get out in front of things. The mortgage companies have essentially been holding off on foreclosures because they've been ordered to you by the federal government. It's been forbearance in place but that forbearance is coming to an end at the end of June. So, just just a few short weeks. So and you reach out for help and be prepared. if the mortgage company will allow you to modify your mortgage. the modification may involve putting those payments at the end of your mortgage. It may mean some kind of slight increase in your payments moving forward. There are all kinds of different types of modifications and if you can get one, that's great. but until you have that modification locked up in place, you need to protect your home and before your home is foreclosed on before the foreclosure sale and option may be getting into a personal reorganization type bankruptcy chapter thirteen which will protect your home. and what what I want our viewers to know is when you're in that chapter thirteen, even then, you can work on modifications that that's gives you some a period of time there to work on that modification with the assistance of a good qualified bankruptcy attorney and the oversight of a federal bankruptcy judge that's going to look at things I want to step back here for a second and bring our viewers up to date as to what we're doing. and then, when we're done, we've had some questions come in. I want to encourage our viewers. If you have questions, please submit them and we'll post them to Nick and he and I will discuss them and try to provide answers to you. I do want to apologize. I've been told that there's a little bit of background noise and I'm not sure what to do about it. So I apologize that there an echo or background noise for our viewers. The and Buddhist Law Offices have been doing this Facebook Live episodes for just over a year now and we try to address issues of importance to our viewers and and to the community that we serve. We help people with money problems Last year has been tough. We know a lot of you are having money problems. We encourage you to be proactive. We are all from absolutely free initial consultations at all of our offices with an experienced attorney most of our attorneys like Nick have 10 years. Plus, so many of us, 20 years plus and some of us old people even more than 30 years, we've been doing this type of work but we want to help you. We in this field of work because we want to help people with money problems. We want to help you save your homes. We want to keep your family together and safe We have done Facebook Live episodes over the last several months and several issues of importance and related to this topic Today, we had Holly Rae with Alabama Legal Services on a few weeks back and we we talked about the eviction moratorium which are similar but different than foreclosure. Moratorium is evictions have to do with people that are renting their homes or apartments how he did it. It's just, it's just an excellent job of going over tenants rights and and how to protect themselves. We had eager Wright board and I've butchered that name so, I apologize who's a managing director at streator to talk about mortgage modifications and programs that are available for people while they're in a chapter thirteen bankruptcy court approved with the assistance of your bankruptcy attorney Last week, we did something different. It's Memorial Day week and we had a special guest. We had recently retired Carnival, Laurie Rasmussen who served many many years in the Air Force and we talked about the meaning of Memorial Day and her perspective as as a member of the military and somebody who served in the armed forces of our country for a long time. folks, This Facebook Live episodes are available both on our website and on our Facebook page. So, if you know somebody that may be behind on their mortgage payments, if you know somebody that is having financial issues, please consider sharing this episode with them. pass it on to them so that they can hear what Nick's had to say. so that they can understand what their rights are and how they can protect their homes. today Again, I have one of our attorneys here at Vons, Nick Guy who has been with us now over 10 years. I've been practicing, I'm sorry, bankruptcy law for over 10 years. You've been with us since 2014. So, Right at 7 years Now, Nick's in our office in Florence, Alabama and also there's some work in our office in Hay, Alabama Nick's a smart guy. Good guy. and he like rest of us is offering absolutely free initial consultations right now and please feel free to reach out to us if you need help and and we'll schedule one of those absolutely free initial consultations for you. We're talking today about the impending end of the foreclosure moratorium period. our country's pulling out of this pandemic right now. Things are getting better. If we're not doing episodes about wearing masks or vaccinations right now because hopefully, most of us have been vaccinated. We're on our way to recovery but as we pull out of this, we're having to, you know, face the music. if we've been unable to make mortgage payments or keep them current over the last year, that period of time in which we were protected from a foreclosure on our home is coming to an end and Nick and I gone through. What a mortgage is, what a foreclosure is, what causes a foreclosure, what the moratorium has been in the fact that it's coming to an end how you may be able to modify your mortgage and if you need some time in order to make sure that modification kicks in and our chapter thirteen verse to the organization bankruptcy can be of assistance Nick. We have had a few questions that have come in here from our audience and if if you're ready, I'm I'm going to, I'm going to give those to you and we'll try to address them. Absolutely. So, so the first question is, if I've missed my mortgage payments and I disqualified from refinancing my loan, Not necessarily. That's actually one of the big reasons why we see a lot of people do refinancing in the first place. You can take whatever those are and then roll that up into the remaining time of your mortgage. Maybe add some more time. You may wind up adding, you know, two or three more years on the end of your current mortgage term but that has the effect of getting you back to current. So, basically, you you you put all that down the until it's stuck on the end and then you just resume your normal monthly payments starting there. And excellent advice. I want this person asking this question to understand exactly though the difference between refinancing your mortgage and modifying your mortgage. refinancing and and I think I think Nick, you are exactly on point with what this individual was asking. I may get a bleep on the screen here if if not but the concern was Can I redo my mortgage? if it's that existing mortgage and you need some help with it? Yes, that would be requesting a modification and exactly what Nick just said would take place. Hopefully, the mortgage company would enter into an agreement with you to put those payments at the end or somehow to adjust your payments to help you get caught up A refinance is is usually taking out a new loan paying off existing note and mortgage. and starting all over again. That's a process that's often available and no, you're not automatically disqualified. It's going to be more difficult, frankly, to refinance if you're behind on your payments. So, the first thing you want to do is exactly what Nick said and let's look at modifying the existing loan but but don't don't put it off Don't wait. You know it's it's time to act now. Reach out for help and to understand what your rights are. So, I think we addressed this next question, Nick but maybe we didn't do it well enough. The person here is asking if I can't make my missed payments. is the mortgage company going to foreclose on my home? I think. yes. I think if there's not really a forgiveness provision, forbearance, you know, means that you will, you will pay those payments just at some future time but if you have missed payments that you just cannot make eventually, they're going to try foreclose if you're not able to bring that account current again, Yeah, it's it it will happen. again if you're not practicing the the the result of not making your mortgage payments. is that the mortgage company may have no other option but to foreclose on your home, You don't want that to happen and that's why you need to be proactive. I keep saying this folks but I know after having done this for so long when you get behind on your bills, when you get behind on your mortgage payments, you tend to just cover up and stick your head in the sand and you want it all to go away. Yeah. But it's not and it's not going to fix itself. Don't Don't let that stress and anxiety be negative. Don't don't, you know, make it cause you to argue with your spouse. Don't cause it to keep you from sleeping. Use that to be proactive. We want you to know that there are options Don't wait to the last minute. Don't wait till you get that foreclosure. Notice if you're behind reach out to the mortgage company. and document everything. Provide everything they ask for and ask for a modification before they foreclose If that process is not working quickly enough. If you can't get a forbearance in place, then, reach out to one of our offices and we can help you with a personal reorganization. Chapter thirteen, bankruptcy which stops the closure. It's not up to the mortgage company at this point. It stops the foreclosure. There's just a wonderful thing in the bankruptcy world caused it called an automatic say that stops all collection activity, foreclosures, repossessions, coalitions, everything. You're protected. everyone We can help you get that into place often with very little or no money down and give you a chance to breathe and work towards that modification. You know, we'll we'll help you with that modification process at that point. and if I'm if I can, there's there's one thing I'd kind of like to emphasize in what you've just said. You you advised everyone to document the process of applying for that modification and II would like to just chime in on that and say that's very important to make a copy of anything that you've send to the mortgage company. There are many occasions where I've spoken to clients who have said that they have tried to go through the modification process two or or even four times and every time they're denied because the paperwork got lost or the mortgage company says they didn't receive the paperwork in enough time and if you don't have a copy of what you sent, then, you've gotta wait to get original versions of those forms and fill all that out all over again and as long as you have copies, if if anything goes wrong, you can put a copy in the mail straight away. So, be sure and document whatever you do with your mortgage company great, great, great advice. and write down names. You know, if if the person you're talking to with the mortgage company will give you their name, write it down. Sometimes, they want to use some other identification operator number or something. Write it down. You know, I put the time of your phone call the number you dialed or the number that the call came from. If you mail something, get one of those green cards at the post office and send it certified mail so that you can prove that you actually sent the documents and you know the days where your mortgage was maybe held by the local bank down the road and you could go and and talk to your loan officer face to face that's getting more and more rare and nowadays, those these mortgage servicers are are massive national corporations and you know, they don't they don't know you necessarily more than just an account number. So, you gotta you gotta protect yourself in that way. Yeah. You know, Nick, this is just as This is one of the things I am hoping has changed over the years and that mortgage services learned with what happened back in 2009. 2010. You and I hear these stories all the time. They ask for pay stubs. I send them pay stubs, they ask for tax returns. I send them tax returns. Something else we hear is that every time I call the mortgage company, I talk to a different person and one person doesn't know what the other said, You know, a very interesting when I did the episode, a few weeks back with Eager with Strat Nick, he talked about a really what I think is a cool new platform that's being set up that will create a direct portal between chapter thirteen Bankruptcy attorney and the mortgage servicer we will be able to communicate through the portal. know exactly what needs to be sedated, know exactly what the status of the modification is. and and hopefully make that modification process much more easy for our clients but again, folks, that's something that, you know, we can do after you get into the chapter thirteen to protect your home and we can help you work on that modification I am Nick. I'm cautiously optimistic that the mortgage companies are really going to work with people. This go around as the as the forbearance period ends instead just quickly initiating foreclosures again that they'll work with people But but I want our viewers should know as optimistic, as cautiously optimistic as I am. We've got to protect your home We have experienced attorneys in the Biden voters Law Offices. The consultation is free. At least reach out and understand what your options are. Talk to an actual attorney. Don't trust Google. Don't trust your wife's cousin who used to be involved in anything. you know, reach out to an experienced bankruptcy attorney with the founding of law offices and we'll help you understand exactly what your are So, this person wants to know Nick. I haven't been making my mortgage payments. Apparently, this individual hasn't. The forbearance periods ending This person wants to know. well, I have to make all of my payments at once. That's possible you may I've heard of different mortgage companies handling that in different ways that your particular mortgage company may be willing to set up some kind of plan or or offer you an option for a modification in some way but they don't believe they have to. I think once the forbearance period is over, they they can demand all those payments to be made and and and and that's exactly right. Under Alabama law, you're behind on your mortgage and you know, there people out there talk about. Well, I'm I've gotta be two payments or three payments or four payments behind before foreclosure. Technically, the day you missed your first payment, the mortgage company can foreclose because at that point, you're in default on your mortgage pre-pandemic. I would say, Nick, our experience was usually probably had to be three, four payments behind at least before a mortgage would normally initiate foreclosure proceedings. Everything's different now. A lot of you I know are a lot more than 234 payments behind and if you are behind or you haven't put a modification in place. One that's been approved by your mortgage lender. then, yes, all payments can become due at once. and if you don't make them to the, that foreclosure can go forward. So, again, if either you or someone you know is behind on their mortgage payments and encourage them to listen to what we're saying today and understand what your rights are, first, try to get a forbearance work with the mortgage company to try to get a forbearance in place. document everything but but if you get a notice of foreclosure sale, It's probably too late to still be working in a forbearance. It's time to reach out and talk to an experienced bankruptcy attorney about how to protect your home during the interim and and how their neck or I or any of our colleagues would try and offices will be glad, you know, to to do an initial free initial consultation with you. Just go to our website or call our offices and we'll set up that appointment. You know, Nick's is something else. I've I've I've heard of people put off coming to see see us even though they know a foreclosure sale. has been scheduled because the person they're talking to about a modification says, I don't worry about that. We'll get this modification in place You've heard that I imagine. haven't you? Oh, yes. Yes, I am. and and the problem is not just said, you know, these companies are so big. They have so many employees You know, it's it's my mother used to say the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. So, one individual and one department that's trying to work with you on a modification may be doing that but somebody in another apartment has already sent it to an attorney and that attorney is aggressively moving forward in a foreclosure An important point you made earlier, Nick is you know, not just a day after the foreclosure sale a minute after the foreclosure sale in Alabama A chapter thirteen is no longer going to help you. You can't save your home at that point to a chapter thirteen So, it's important to get to an attorney as far in advance of the foreclosure sale as possible. and Nick, unfortunately, you and I both had people contact us a day or two before the foreclosure sale and although we'll try to help the point, it's tough. We we really need as much time as we can. It's tough It's when you're doing something like a chapter thirteen. You really can't throw it together at the last minute. there are emergency petitions. It's possible but you know, a normal chapter thirteen petition is going to run anywhere from fifty to 75 pages. These are these are big documents that all have to be accurately and quickly with the court and it's it's hard to get the information you need to do that in 24 hours. and I think the key thing you just said is to do it properly and this is something else I really want to underscore for our viewers. you can say I'm an experienced attorney. I've been doing this for over 30 years. I guess what it really means is that I'm an old attorney and and one thing I've seen over the years is whenever there's a downturn in the economy when when something's happening that's, you know, going to cause people perhaps seek bankruptcy protection There are a lot of attorneys that say, well, I'm going to start doing bankruptcy work and I'm going to start trying to earn a living here by by filing bankruptcy petitions. I don't want to say anything bad about any other attorney but if you make the decision to file bankruptcy there, there will be good results. There will be bad results. It's going to be one of the most important decisions you make in your life. It's going to be with you for a period of time. You want to make sure you choose an experienced and qualified bankruptcy attorney that has a good reputation You are in Alabama or mississippi III encourage you to reach out and ask. We've been helping people in Alabama and Mississippi for over 30 years with the financial problems and and we make a point of doing it, right? People If you come in and you're facing the potential loss of your home or the potential loss of your vehicle or in a situation where bankruptcy may be important to you, we're going to treat you like we treat our own family. We we don't do this work because you know, of our bottom line, we do this to help people. I've said to people more than once, It's really almost like a ministry when people have financial problems, it's a tough time. It's a tough time and we're not going to judge you. We're going to help you get out of that bad situation can help you come up with a plan. The bankruptcy code exists to give an honest debtor a fresh start and Nick, I know like me and there's really, you know, somebody comes into your office for an initial consultation today, talking to them on the phone and and they're cheerful and you can tell they're they're going through a tough time. There's really no better feeling than helping them come up with a plan I imagine you've probably had some experiences like that, haven't you? Oh, yeah. Many times That's that's why I'm still here and that's why we're doing this job for days like that. Those are the days make it worth it, you know, because because it's not easy. You know, don't we don't we don't do this type of law because it's simple and quick. It's complicated stuff but you know, these are these are rights that people have that that not many people necessarily know they have and to be able to to show people that and and help people out of those are really tough times. That's the best It really is and and again, I think Nick's just said it. Well, that's that's why I'm still here to doing this after a long time. What we're we're doing this is we want people to know what their rights are. We want to protect them from their creditors and we want to give them a chance to you know, not only hold their finances together to hold their family together, hold their life together, and to turn things around and to get out from under the financial burdens that they're facing. So, this next question a particular politicians named and I'm not going to let this get political but I don't know. Let me rephrase this. Nick, do you think that there will be any additional mortgage forbearance is granted or any additional stimulus packages going forward? I'm of two minds about it to be honest III feel like as you mentioned earlier, we we are kind of coming out of this and I think there is a big push to to get back to normal. You know, the the last time there was an extension There was an extension to the CARE act which occurred. I think it was just a few days before that acts provisions were set to expire back in back in March. So, I wouldn't be surprised if they're the last minute extension on some of these provisions but at the same time, you know, I'm kind of thinking that the the prevailing feeling is one of you know, wishing it were so, you know, if if we have to have more extensions and that means there's still a problem if we don't pass any more extensions, that's a sign that things are getting better whether they whether they are or not. I don't know. I don't know how politicians think. Yeah, yeah II. Don't think either of us do. In fact, I don't think they do sometimes. I emphasize in this point to our viewers but you can't sit back and and just wait Now is the time to pull yourself up to be proactive and to reach out for help. Mortgage servicers want to help you with mortgage modifications. Congress president want to help you. They they've enacted these forbearance programs that have been in place for some time. Stimulus payments have been available but we really don't know if there's going to be more relief going forward. You can't rely on that. You need to take action on your own Pick up your phone or or go to your computer and go to our website Call us fill out a form on our website and we'll call you schedule a free consultation. It doesn't cost you anything and you'll talk with an experienced qualified attorney that wants to help you and you'll know what your options are and and how things will happen if you do decide to seek some sort of bankruptcy protection moving forward, You know, Rick, Nick, I'm sorry. a lot of people are making that phone call and reaching out for help from a bankruptcy attorney is a really tough thing to do. You know, I think there's a misconception out there that if I filed bankruptcy, I'm not going to be able to get any credit for the next seven to 10 years and in my credit is going to be ruined. What would you say to those people that that are letting that keep them from reaching out for help right now? I would say that that at this point is a little bit of an urban legend. with the the overhauls that have been done to the bankruptcy code and and modern day, you know, credit systems, you will for sure take a hit to your credit but it's not going to last you for years like it may have. If you had filed back in the 80s or 90s generally in in everyday practice from what we see. you know, when a when when a person is getting out of a bankruptcy their credit is wiped clean. That's part of the effect of the case and you can probably to be able to use credit again even for big purchases like a car probably within about a year to twelve or year to 14 months somewhere in that range. It's the again. I'm the old attorney. I do remember, you know, filing bankruptcies back in the 80s and 90s and I do remember how difficult it was to rebuild your credit. That's not at all the case today. In fact, you know, where I spend a lot of time helping people rebuild their credit years ago. Now, what we can try to emphasize that you don't want to get into this trouble again credit will come fairly quickly. Credit offers will come fairly quickly but they're not going to be necessarily the best offers. They have to be the lowest interest rates right off and it's easy to get in trouble. again. One, you know, I always make this point, Nick, people are worried about the impact. bankruptcy is going to have on their credit. right now. You know, if you haven't been making your mortgage payments, if you're behind on your bills, your credits probably already in bad shape. Number one. Yeah. And number two, bankruptcy. You can rebuild your credit fairly quickly after a bankruptcy. So, people say, you know, what? What's the worst thing that happens when I file a bankruptcy? I'll tell you that the negatives that they can happen is you can't file another of see right away and that's especially true now with changes that have been made over the last couple of decades, we've had a bankruptcy laws. You know, if you decide that you Defiling chapter seven, bankruptcy. The biggest thing you're going to lose is your right to file another chapter seven bankruptcy and get a discharge for 8 years. So, all the more reason to be very careful with your credit, it's going to be there. You just want to be careful with it going forward. like that. Chapter seven bankruptcy chapter thirteen a lot more flexibility If you follow chapter eighteen and you get behind on your mortgage payments again after you file we can often help people but I modify your plan and get them caught up on their own payments. or if or if you're chapter thirteen is dismissed without a discharge, you're usually eligible to refile. There are some exceptions You want to talk to an experienced attorney but there's really no reason not to reach out for help right now. Nick. I've I've got one more question I'm going to ask you but before I ask it, I'm just going to give you a warning here. I always wrap up this Facebook Live episodes by asking my guests if if there's anything that I missed or anything important that they want to say. So, I'm just warning you about that in advance right now. This next question here is how much will it cost to file a chapter thirteen bankruptcy? I'm Nick. answer that for our offices in Florence and Hay. but before he does it, I want you to know that each of the court systems before which we practice are a little bit different and the amount of money if you're going to pay any money at all before your bankruptcy is filed, it's going to be a little bit different. but Nick, why don't you, if somebody comes to see you in your office in Florence or if you're in our office in Hay, typically, what's at a cost to file a chapter thirteen bankruptcy. typically to to file it would cost 100 $100 out of pocket. Now, that that is not for our attorney's fees for hiring us or the court. You can put all of that into the chapter thirteen to be paid out over time but there are certain things you have to do to prepare yourself to be able to file including taking what's called a credit counseling courses and so that's what that $100 cost is for. you know, and that kind of goes back to the point I guess you were making earlier again about how you know, some attorneys when they see a downturn in the economy will try to jump in to filing. There are there are multiple things in the process of filing that have to be done even before you file in order to have a successful case and so if if you don't know those things and you just jump in, you're you may have no hope of having a successful case. if you you didn't, you know, have someone advising you and preparing you to get that started You know, Nick, you're right in every year at the end of the year, the the law school down in Tuscaloosa, they asked me to come down and give a talk to attorneys. to continuing legal education program and at this particular seminar, it's it's for people that have not gotten their continuing legal education hours in throughout the year. So, they're not necessarily bankruptcy attorneys and I'm just giving an overview of the bankruptcy laws. I will, I will say that by the I go through with other attorneys, all the steps necessary. to get a chapter thirteen filed and the credit counseling that the financial management course, the means test collection of pay stubs and tax returns that most attorneys that don't do this work regularly at that point shake their head and they realize this is this is an area where you need somebody that specializes in the field Let me let me expand upon chapter thirteen attorney's fees just a little bit just to cover really all of the jurisdictions in which we practice What what Nick told you and he was careful to say this, the amount of money you pay upfront is usually going to be very small and in many of our offices will file a chapter thirteen with absolutely no money upfront. You may pay the credit counseling company to complete your credit counseling doesn't mean that there isn't an attorney's fee. We are, We apply for a fee that is paid as part of your plan of reorganization. The amount we're paid is going to vary and you know, I always tell people, if you really look at Howard chapter thirteen works, it's usually not even you making the payment because it as we both know from crafting a plan people pay their disposable income into the plan and whatever is to us and fees is simply money that's not going to their creditors. So, I tell people, it's a great way to get your creditors to pay for your bankruptcy attorney There are options available. People reach out. Nick, I want to be respectful of your time. We're we're nearing an hour here. I'm grateful not only for today. I'm grateful for everything you do for our clients every day. Folks, Nick is is a person that cares about the people you represent. and he's smart. I learned things from Nick. He does a great job with our clients. So, it's so in conclusion here, Nick, what what what may we, what may I have left out here? What's important for people to know that are watching this video right now? Well, I don't know that you left it out. I would like to I guess retouch on one of the things you mentioned kind of at the beginning kind of kind of in in keeping with it being June here now, I think should be aware that you have options to apply for a mortgage forbearance. if that's causing you trouble but the deadline is rapidly approaching. Also need to be aware that the moratorium on foreclosures is rapidly approaching and when that is over, you may find yourself in a situation where you're getting, you know, immediate demand letters from the mortgage company asking for payment in full and if you are facing a lump sum payment that you cannot do, that you don't know how you're going to manage, call us because we can talk you through what your options are for how you have various ways to handle that either through a chapter thirteen or we can help try and explain your options as far as a modification or refinance. You know, if if there's a way that we can help you and have to file a bankruptcy case, we'll absolutely talk you through that and help you figure out a way to do that but you need to be aware of what your rights are and what abilities you have to kind of, you know, fight back so to speak against the mortgage company that's that's trying to take your home You know, what you just said there. I really think makes us unique really not only for any practice law but really any business you and I make a living primarily by filing bankruptcies for people but if somebody comes to see one of us, our first Objective is to keep you out of bankruptcy if we can and it really is Bankruptcy should not be your first option. If we see other options out there, that make sense, we're going to counsel you to to explore those options and and to do what you can to avoid filing a bankruptcy We're going to do our best to take care of you and if a bankruptcy is something that makes sense to you, we're going to do job at catering to your needs To all of our clients are different. Everybody has different needs. We're going to look at your situation and we're going to help you get the fresh start that you're guaranteed by the laws of our country. I think, you know, just from listening today is somebody that cares about people, cares about our clients is knowledgeable with respect to the law, you will find that with all of our attorneys at the Bo Bo Law Offices, we take pride in doing things right and we want to help you if we can. In summary, you give a mortgage on your home when you buy the home so that if you don't make the payments, the mortgage company can take your home back. If you're behind, that means you're in default on your mortgage, The mortgage company can't foreclose and in Alabama and Mississippi, that foreclosure process is quick. It's usually just over a month, you know, maximum of 2 months from start to finish from when you're Do you no longer own your home? Number three right now, many of the mortgage services are offering forbearance programs. If you're behind, see if if can't get a forbearance in place on your mortgage, the period within which to do that is coming to an end rapidly. There has been a moratorium in our country and most mortgage foreclosures. It's coming to an end at the end of this month. At the end of June of this year, and if you don't have a modification in place, a chapter thirteen, personal reorganization, bankruptcy may make a lot of sense for you. If you're in one of these situations, if you're behind in your payments, please reach out to us. We're offering absolutely free initial consultations. We'll do them from the safety of your own office. We'll do them by phone. We'll do them by video. We want to help you From all of us at the Bon and Law Offices, on behalf of Nick, on behalf of myself, god bless each everyone of you. We're here if you need us and we'll see you again next week. Thank you, Nick. Yes, sir. Thank you very much.