If you are one of the over 100,000 American homeowners to receive a Notice of Default last month – well, at least you are not alone! The Notice of Default (NOD) is the official start to the foreclosure process. It probably was not a surprise to you, as it usually takes about 90 days of delinquency before it is issued. But, it’s always a shocker, and never a welcomed event. This foreclosure process that you are now in will protect you even while it humiliates you.

Don’t bother being emotional about it. It’s a waste of valuable time. Rather, view it as an opportunity to negotiate a workout that will really work for you and your family. To stem the rising tide of foreclosures, the federal government has pressured banks to modify hundreds of thousands of mortgages. Unfortunately, the banks are not cooperating, as we all know and the time and effort involved in getting a mod is onerous. And, many, if not most of trial modifications are not being made permanent. Still, you do not need to settle for anything less than a real fix. Get a mortgage modification arrangement that you can live with through the next few tough years and into the future as well.

Everyone who get an NOD asks:

What do I do next?! How can this get any more embarrassing? What are my options? What are others doing? Who can help me?

Good questions! And, understandable. But, also ask:

SHOULD I keep this house, with this mortgage? What are the tax implications of some of these workout options? How can I minimize the negatives on my credit report? Is there a way to be protected from recourse – being sued for any deficiency (shortfall) in my foreclosure workout? What are others doing to get through foreclosure better-off than before it?

You feel like your situation is unique, but there are tons of similarities to what millions of other are going through. So much so, that you will do well to hook-up with an active, knowledgeable and trustworthy lawyer or loan modification consultant to help you succeed. The advice that is suitable for the masses…is just too watered-down to do you any good beyond just “getting in line” with everyone else. You need the advice of someone who is succeeding at modifications every day.

Want to find out more about actually getting Mortgage Modification? Visit Rockwood’s site about DIY Loan Modification at Home Loan Modification

You won’t get a loan modification by waiting in line. It’s just too long. Get “out-of-line” by following my advice.

In the current Loan Modification Frenzy, the “line” is too long. Hundreds of thousands are in the queue ahead of you with more than 50,000 added per week. The banks can’t staff and train and manage and retain nearly enough workers and the systems and procedures are overwhelmed as well. Add to that the fact that the banks are only begrudgingly cooperating with the effort – and you have a formula for frustration and failure.

Only 4% of us, at the front of the line are getting good modifications. so, let’s continue to figure-out just what theyare doing and copy it! In several recent articles I’ve described the way the winners construct their applications and follow-up on their files to leverage “File Inertia”. Let me now describe how they escalate problems when they occur.

Because problems are an inevitable part of such a convoluted and broken process, effectively dealing with them is critical. I advise you to 1) Ask 5 Times, 2) Escalate Well and 3) Escalate Well Beyond.

Ask 5 Times – Handling common problems is easy. If they misplaced your 4506-T Form, send them another one. If they want 3 months of bank statements instead of the 2 their forms statesend it in. What I mean by Ask 5 Times is, when you get information from the agent that is just wrong, and you can’t seem to get them to perceive itI call back and try another agent, 5 times. That’s right, it’s not worth it to try to prove your point and sometimes the agent is just not savvy enough or trained well enough to understand your question or concern. If I can’t get 5 agents to give me the “right” answer, then I ESCALATE.

Escalation means going up the chain of command. It means requesting that a manager or supervisor review the situation with you. Be sure to do this politely to minimize the snub to the agent but be firm. Simply say (to the 5th agent) “Please connect me to your supervisor, will you? This matter is ust too important to me to let this go. I want to hear it from a supervisor”. Sometimes the agent will obligeand other times the agent will argue with you. I believe that sometimes too, agents will ask their co-worker to pose as a manager for the call. It may happen that the manager will have to call you back. Don’t hold your breath. Occassionally you will get lucky and a well trained and well informed manager will get on the line and provide some real vaue.

Escalate Well Beyond the Loss Mitigation Department. Perhaps departmental rules or guidelines have to be altered in your case. Often the individual departments do not have the authority to make exceptions. You should seek assistance and support from other departments, or from bank executives, regulatory agencies, politicians, trade associations or, maybe even the press. Don’t think that your problem is too small for any of them to care about. The secret to winning their support is to ask for it in a way that indicates you 1) have used all the correct channels already, 2) understand their role and have appropriate expectations for what they can do to help, 3) know specifically what you want them to do and 4) that you are the type of person who will not stop escalating if they fail to respond.

These Escalations Well Beyond are incredibly effective. Recently one client was assisted by the CEO of Aurora Loan Servicing, another by a local Congressman’s plea to the OTS and a third by a U.S. Senator! Who’d a thunk it?

We’re all in this together (well, many of us are at least). And getting help is often just a case of knowing who to ask and what to ask for. Most people are genuinely sympathetic to those of us caught in the housing crisis. After all, it’s nearly most of us.

Rockwood, dubbed the “Loan Mod Mercenary”, has helped thousands get great loan mods despite the odds. ? Visit Rockwood’s site about DIY Loan Modification at Home Loan Modification