Making Home Affordable Program Now Includes Assistance with the Second Lien Program

Today the Obama Administration provided a press release announcing details of new efforts to help bring relief to responsible homeowners under the Making Home Affordable Program, including an effort to achieve greater affordability for homeowners by lowering payments on their second mortgages as well as a set of measures to help underwater borrowers stay in their homes. A segment of that press release is below: WASHINGTON – The Obama Administration today announced details of new efforts to help bring relief to responsible homeowners under the Making Home Affordable Program, including an effort to achieve greater affordability for homeowners by lowering payments on their second mortgages as well as a set of measures to help underwater borrowers stay in their homes. "With these latest program details, we're offering even more opportunities for borrowers to make their homes more affordable under the Administration's housing plan," said Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. "Ensuring that responsible homeowners can afford to stay in their homes is critical to stabilizing the housing market, which is in turn critical to stabilizing our financial system overall. Every step we take forward is done with that imperative in mind." "Today's announcements will make it easier for borrowers to modify or refinance their loans under FHA's Hope for Homeowners program," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "We encourage Congress to enact the necessary legislative changes to make the Hope for Homeowners program an integral part of the Making Home Affordable Program. "The Second Lien Program announced today will work in tandem with first lien modifications offered under the Home Affordable Modification Program to deliver a comprehensive affordability solution for struggling borrowers. Second mortgages can create significant challenges in helping borrowers avoid foreclosure, even when a first lien is modified. Up to 50 percent of at-risk mortgages have second liens, and many properties in foreclosure have more than one lien. Under the Second Lien Program, when a Home Affordable Modification is initiated on a first lien, servicers participating in the Second Lien Program will automatically reduce payments on the associated second lien according to a pre-set protocol. Alternatively, servicers will have the option to extinguish the second lien in return for a lump sum payment under a pre-set formula determined by Treasury, allowing servicers to target principal extinguishment To read the entire press release and view other documents that will help you understand these new programs, go to: https://sites.google.com/site/survivingalayoff/housing-assistance

Special Column from the Social Security Administration

DON’T BE AN APRIL FOOL WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR ECONOMIC RECOVERY PAYMENT By Tom Clark Social Security Public Affairs Specialist No one likes being the target of an April fool’s prank. If you’re receiving Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, don’t let anyone fool you regarding your special one-time recovery payment of $250 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

To make sure no one does, we’ll state this as clearly as possible:

All Social Security and SSI beneficiaries who are eligible for the special one-time recovery payment will have their payment issued in May;

• The payment is automatic; no action is required on your part; and there are no requests to make, no applications to complete and no fees to pay.
• If you receive a visit, call or email from anyone claiming to want to help you obtain your payment, be skeptical.
• Do not pay anyone to help you receive your payment.
• And do not reveal any of your personal information to them, such as your full name, date of birth, or Social Security number. If someone requests this information for this purpose, it’s more likely they’re “out to get you” than out to get your payment for you.
• In addition to people who receive Social Security and SSI benefits, people who receive benefits from Veterans Affairs and the Railroad Retirement Board will receive one-time payments of $250.

Note, however, that only one payment of $250 will be made per person, regardless of any combination of benefits that may be received.

How will your recovery payment be made? The same way that your regular monthly payments are made. People with direct deposit will receive their payments electronically. Those who receive paper checks will receive their payments in the mail. People who receive regular payments through the new Direct Express debit card will receive their one-time payments through the card. We will send your one-time payment separately from your Social Security or SSI benefit. To assist in processing the payments as efficiently as possible, please do not contact Social Security — unless you have not received your payment by June 4. More information is available at www.socialsecurity.gov/payment and will be updated as needed. Rest assured that your special one-time recovery payment will be sent to you automatically. And if it’s not received by June 4, there’s only one place you need to contact: Social Security, at your local office, or 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). To learn more about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, visit www.recovery.gov. To learn more about Social Security, visit www.socialsecurity.gov.

Federal Stimulus funds bring increase in benefits for SNAP program (Food Stamps)

SNAP food benefit amounts to increase in April

Texans receiving SNAP food benefits, formerly known as food stamps, will see an increase in their monthly allotments beginning in April as a result of the federal stimulus package. The federal stimulus included a 13.6 percent increase in the monthly benefits for people getting SNAP food benefits. Currently, the average SNAP benefit is $276 a month. The stimulus will increase that by $38 a month, raising the average monthly benefits to $314. When the increase is applied to the state’s more than 1 million SNAP cases, the result is an additional $43 million a month in benefits for Texans. The stimulus also lifts the limits on the amount of time a childless adult ages 18 to 50 can receive food benefits. Under current federal rules, those adults are limited to getting benefits for no more than three months in a three-year period unless they meet strict work or job training requirements. Individuals and families needing help in purchasing food can apply for SNAP benefits at any HHSC benefits office in Texas or through a network of community organizations and the Texas Food Bank Network.

Avoid Foreclosure Scams!

Twenty-four hour news channels and Internet information at a click of the mouse can be a double-edged sword, especially if you are behind on your mortgage and worried about losing your home. We know that there is funding through recent legislation that is designed to help homeowners keep their investment. But who can you trust? The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas wants to help you understand the complexities of the foreclosure crisis and provide solutions for community recovery, rebuilding and preparing for the future. Their website at: http://dallasfed.org/ca/foreclosure/index.cfm provides a variety of helpful, easy to read articles that could make this road a little less treacherous. One great example comes from The Federal Reserve Board at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/foreclosurescamtips/default.htm They list of 5 simple tips that if taken, could avoid disaster: 1. Work only with a nonprofit, HUD-approved counselor. If you are looking for help to prevent foreclosure, be sure the counseling agency is on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's list of approved agencies. Visit HUD's website for an easily searchable list of HUD-approved housing counseling agencies, or call 877-HUD-1515 (877-483-1515) for more information. If you are approached by foreclosure counselors--by mail, phone, or in person--make sure the counseling agency is HUD-approved before you do business with them. 2. Don't pay an arm and a leg. You should not have to pay hundreds--or thousands--of dollars. Most HUD-approved housing counselors provide no-cost counseling services and many more provide low-cost counseling. Do not agree to work with a counselor who collects a fee before providing you with any services or who accepts payment only by cashier's check or wire transfer. In general, do not pay money to anyone unless you know exactly what services you will receive. 3. Be wary of "guarantees." A reputable counselor will not guarantee to stop the foreclosure process, no matter what your circumstances. Working with a legitimate counselor can certainly increase your chances of keeping your home--but be wary of people who promise a sure thing. Again, get the details of your transaction, along with any promises, in writing first. 4. Know what you are signing--and be sure you sign it. Don't let a counselor pressure you to sign paperwork you haven't had a chance to read through carefully or that you don't understand. Don't sign any blank forms or let "the counselor" fill out forms for you. Be sure to talk with an attorney before signing anything that transfers the title of your home to another party. 5. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If you feel you may be the target or victim of foreclosure fraud, trust your instincts and seek help. For tips on spotting scam artists, visit the Federal Trade Commission's web page on foreclosure rescue scams. Report suspicious schemes to your state and local consumer protection agencies, which you can find on the Federal Citizen Information Center's Consumer Action Website This is just one article in this excellent series. You’ll also find information about the Federal Reserve’s Homeownership and Mortgage Initiative, which is a comprehensive strategy across the Federal Reserve System to provide information and outreach to prevent unnecessary foreclosures and to stabilize communities. Help is out there, just do your homework and these websites are a great place to start!

Are you considering a "work from home" job? Consider this first!

What are Work-at-Home Jobs really all about? If you truly interested in this kind of work and are willing to do your homework and use common sense, you can find real work -from-your-dining-table jobs, ranging from telemarketing and virtual assistance to software development and graphic design. If you look, it will take only a few clicks to see SCAMS worthy of the best smooth talkin Nigerian prince. "Any kid in his basement can make a decent-looking website," warns Alison Southwick of the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Industry observers currently place the ratio of scams to legitimate jobs at an astonishing 54 to 1. The BBB also states that no one should send money, banking account numbers, or your Social Security number (SSN) until you've researched every aspect of that business and you're well along in the hiring process. There are some notable websites that provide employment information on Homeshoring, Virtual Call Centers, and Work From Home opportunities. A few notables are: Arise.com, workingsolutions.com, liveops.com, alpineaccess.com, and westathome.com specialize in outsourced call center jobs that can be done from home and generally pay $7 to $14 an hour. But READ THE FINE PRINT! Some pay only per minute you're on the phone (like LiveOps, which takes calls for infomercial customers), while others guarantee an hourly rate. Some upfront costs might be for things like charges for a background and credit check (not unusual in this industry) as well as training, incorporation, and equipment fees: a headset ($75 or so), high-speed Internet access, a dedicated landline, and current software. Then there are some sites such as virtualassistants.com and tjobs.com, that charge a FEE for access to listings. Don't be automatically turned off by these sites because the up-side can that be that you don't have to weed through postings to find ones geared toward home workers and there are fewer scam listings. For someone who enjoys the reseach, most of these virtual jobs can be found through free job search engines. Just remember, it's up to you to do the homework! There are even speciality sites like, Momcorps.com, which is a free site geared toward talented stay-at-home mothers as well as a staffing service that lets you post a detailed profile. Pay $9.95 a month and your profile jumps to the top of an employer's search. Then there are virtual marketplace sites like odesk.com which states "oDesk is the marketplace for online workteams, with the best business model for both buyers and providers. Our unique approach guarantees that an hour paid is an hour worked while also guaranteeing that an hour worked is an hour paid." And guru.com, who states on their website, "Guru.com provides the world's largest online marketplace for freelance talent. Today Guru.com is a leader in its industry with more than 1 million registered members and 100,000 active freelancer profiles. lThese companies attempt to link freelancers who have specialized skills (like video editing, blog writing, or Web developing) with employers who need these freelance skills. This concept can be effective but understand that candidates ususally bid for these jobs. Some users indicate it can be hard to compete with offshore workers who give lowball figures to win assignments. Others love the whole concept. This is another area that can work well but research is always your best option. Finally, some interesting work-at-home jobs can be found at vipdesk.com, which hires virtual personal assistants for clients. If you think this might be worth considering, understand that you need to submit a résumé and writing sample, agree to a background and credit check, interview by phone twice, train for ten days, provide references, and be available to work nights, weekends, and holidays. And you may have to wait. Hourly pay is $14 to $20. If you're serious about working from home, it's very possible! Just go into it with your eyes wide open and your research completely done!