The couple also fought their bank–and won. After Bank of America acquired their loan from the defunct Countrywide Home Loans, the couple noticed inexplicable “miscellaneous†fees on their mortgage statements. In fact, the Tripletts were being charged default service fees. These fees are assessed to cover a bank’s cost of hiring real estate brokers to evaluate homes for foreclosure. Banks are only supposed to assess these fees when a homeowner is behind on payments. But the Tripletts say they had never paid late.
In addition, the couple saw ads on TV about refinancing programs that President Obama had initiated to help homeowners–all homeowners, not just those who couldn’t pay their mortgage. Told by their lender that they were ineligible because they weren’t behind in their payments, the Tripletts boldly stopped paying their mortgage in November 2010. Rufus says, however, “I saved [the mortgage payment in an account] every month, just in case.†Although the move bruised their credit score of nearly 700, lowering it by about 100 points, the almost $900 accumulating in fees was their overriding concern. Their score has since recovered.
Next, the Tripletts filed a complaint through Helpwithmybank.gov, a website of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury which regulates and supervises 2,000 national banks and federal savings associations. Jenny says the agency essentially forced the lender to review their case. Within five months the bank refinanced the loan, bringing down their payment to $450 from the $646 they had been paying (their payment was previously lowered when Countrywide sold their loan). By this time the couple had saved nearly $6,000 in mortgage payments. They used some of it to pay off nearly $3,000 in revolving debt.
Since then, they have focused on maintaining their debt-free lifestyle. With the exception of what they owe on their home, the Tripletts have attained financial freedom. Looking back at the journey and the benefits of homeownership, Rufus, says, “I think we got exactly what we were aiming for.â€
How We Did It
Consider using your home to operate a business. We started our business in a spare bedroom not knowing if it was going to succeed or fail. If space is available in your home, use it for a home business. See if you need to expand and how much an expansion would cost. Working from home saves you money on expensive overhead and allows you to write off for tax purposes a percentage of your home space, utilities, and income.
Take advantage of homeownership programs. We knocked $200 off our mortgage through persistent research and by contacting a federal agency via Helpwithmybank.gov. Although the bank told us we were ineligible, we persisted and got our loan refinanced. Discount programs such as homestead exemptions are available to homeowners, as are programs that specifically target minorities. Organizations such as NACA, or the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, assist troubled homeowners.
Read your statements. Don’t just get a bill and pay it. Take time to look through it, and don’t be afraid to question anything out of the ordinary. If you have miscellaneous charges or corporate fees on your statement, send a registered certified letter to your lender asking for an explanation. We were charged excessive and unnecessary service fees. It was just plain fraudulent. Being proactive and persistent saved us a lot of money in the long run.