by Diana Pando
It was just before the holidays in November of 2013 when the Diaz family began to experience financial hardship. Mr. Diaz, a life-long resident of Pilsen, had trouble finding work as a roofer. They had purchased their home for their children’s future so that they didn’t have to worry about renting, but now that was in jeopardy. The family began to fall behind on payments and struggled to keep up.
Mr. Diaz knew he needed to find help so he contacted The Resurrection Project and began working with Lizette Carretero, TRP’s Home Preservation Specialist. “Preventing a foreclosure affects a whole community,” says Carretero. “By putting equity back into the communities, we can create sustainable neighborhoods for continued growth.”
She began working with them to try and find solutions, but the Diaz family felt like they were running out of time to save their home. They had started receiving intent to foreclose letters from the bank’s attorneys. “It was a difficult time for my family,” said Mr. Diaz. “We thought we were going to lose our home and weren’t sure where we would end up.” They desperately needed a loan modification to try and save their home.
The loan modification would provide long-term assistance on their payments by extending the loan up to 40 years. However, despite submitting all the necessary paperwork, they were still not approved. Lizette researched a new regulation prohibiting banks from referring clients to foreclosure while under review for a loan modification.
After confirming her suspicions, she contacted the HAMP Solution Center and made them aware that the bank was violating regulations and referring the borrowers to foreclosure. According to Mr. Diaz, “If it wasn’t for Lizette taking her time to work on this case, I don’t know what we would have done.”
Within a month of filing the notice, the Diaz family was granted a HAMP modification that reduced their payment by over $400. “It’s a big relief we got the loan modification,” says Diaz. “We’re happy because we get to keep our home.”
The family was so happy, they sent Lizette a bouquet of flowers for all her help. Lizette, for her part, is happy to have helped another family keep their home.
“We are here to educate and provide assistance no matter how advanced their foreclosure may be,” she says. “The best part about it is that our services are free!”
Families on the verge of foreclosure should seek help immediately by communicating with their lender and opening all correspondence. To learn more about TRP’s foreclosure prevention counseling, visit www.resurrectionproject.org.

Return to Nueva Vida September 2014 here.