Share Your Story

Tue, Jun 16, 2009

Share Your Story

The mortgage crisis is affecting families, neighborhoods and businesses alike. We believe in the power of our community to come together and pull each other through this. Whether you’re facing the crisis head on or know someone who is, we invite you to share your experiences , tips and resources below that may help out someone else out who is facing foreclosure. With a strong community, no one is alone.

4 Responses to “Share Your Story”

  1. Cheryl Burns Says:
    July 23rd, 2009 at 10:24 am

    I would like more information on how we can be added as a resource. We are a HUD approved housing counseling agency with offices in Hamilton, Middletown and Mason.

  2. admin Says:
    July 27th, 2009 at 1:21 pm

    Hi Cheryl!
    Thanks for your comment. We have added your organization on our resource page and map.

  3. LaShonda Thompson Says:
    September 17th, 2009 at 5:13 pm

    “BE PREPARED” & Never give up to save your home. We have been diligently corresponding with our lender since November 2008, but due to their latency still have no results regarding a request for a home loan modification. Many have told us our case seems very strange since the process seems to be steam rolling ahead in such an abnormal rate of speed. We rcvd the Foreclosure notification in June yet we have already been in court on Monday, 9/14/09, facing the judge and a representative there on behalf of our lender, who by the way, knew NOTHING! The judge even told us “Our case seemed very odd deeming it was only a short time ago we received notification about foreclosure yet our lender is trying to proceed forward with a “Summary of Motion Judgment” in such as short period of time. I won’t dwell on oddities, although this forum was meant to share your story. But our lender has requested some very unusual and unnecessary information pertaining to our request for home loan modification. For example, the loss mitigation team, working on behalf of NationPoint, our lender who is also no longer doing business because they too were bought out by US Bank, had us fill their our the Home loan modification financial packet to see if we qualify, which we did provided them with initially in November 2008, but again because of their latency issues, requested again in June 2009 for an up-to-date financial packet with this information, but also ridiculously request a short but detailed letter explaining why we need a loan modification & why our grocery budget is so low, although a typical American family grocery budget is usually ~$800-1000 per month. So to make a long story short, I guess what I am trying to say is if your are in a similar predicament as my family is enduring {Facing Foreclosure} May I suggest for you to get a big bag and carry your papers around every where you go, as I do, because I never know who or what I may run into at the spur of the moment. Therefore, I try my best to stay prepared for a rainy day! Good luck!

    P.S. If anyone thinks they can be of help or would like to here more about our story please don’t hesitate to post a reply for me to get back in contact w/you. Thank you!

  4. Cindy Schneider Says:
    October 2nd, 2009 at 10:37 am

    My home is in foreclosure because the public retirement system I have paid into, School Employees Retirement System or SERS, has determined that I am “no longer disabled.” I have appealed their decision with medical evidence from my treating physicians. Instead of making a decision, they sent me to another one of their doctors to be evaluated. The longer they delay, the closer I am to losing my home. Legal aid cannot help me, unless I have income to ask the bank to work with me.

    I am hoping that someone out there will know what can be done. Below is an email my case manager/advocate wrote.

    Cindy Schneider

    —————–

    WE NEED YOUR HELP!

    One of our PLAN (Planned Lifetime Assistance Network) clients, Cindy Schneider, is in desperate need of your help. She’s been unfairly denied Disability Benefits from the public retirement system she’s paid into, (School Employees Retirement System or SERS), and she’s losing hope quickly.

    Five years ago, Cindy was rear ended by a truck at an intersection. Since then, she’s been unable to work due to a combination of serious symptoms that plague her constantly including extreme fatigue, headaches, balance problems, tremors, and extreme stimuli sensitivity. In short, she suffered a brain injury and has been unable to work ever since because of it.

    But try telling that to SERS, who “re-evaluated” her earlier this year and found her capable of returning to her former full time job as an educational program coordinator! They terminated her benefits in May, 2009. They then allowed her an appeal of that decision in June. Following her appeal, they apparently thought another evaluation was necessary and she was sent to another SERS doctor. While we haven’t heard his determination yet, we’re not hopeful that he will find her disabled (no SERS doctor has yet, however ALL of her providers have). Cindy’s had trouble with each step of the SERS disability process. Her treating physicians and PLAN (her case management organization) know and have reported that Cindy simply cannot work given her condition – it takes a lot for her to just get through the day! But SERS seems to think that those who know her best are not the best judges of her capabilities.

    Meanwhile, this lady is facing a true crisis. Her home is in foreclosure and she’s about to lose her house, the only vestige of the old life she once enjoyed. She’s now on Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, and Food Stamps (because the Social Security System had no trouble finding her totally disabled), and cannot make it on the $670 per month paid in SSI stipend. She has six pets that she cannot take with her if she has to move to subsidized housing. Should this system pass the buck for Cindy’s care to the Ohio taxpayer when she’s entitled to the benefits from the system she paid in to? Especially considering the lavish headquarters they built for themselves, complete with original artwork and sculpture and a state of the art conference room that rivals many top law firms in this state?

    SERS has written their own bylaws, which allow them pretty much carte blanche in terms of what they can do in determining disability. As an example of this, one of the most damning reports regarding Cindy’s condition was developed by one of only two neuropsychologists they send people to in Ohio for an “independent evaluation”. This psychologist has had his Ohio license suspended twice due to consumer complaints, yet SERS has no trouble continuing to use him? They also disregard neuropsychological evidence from other reputable evaluators? I wonder why.

    We URGENTLY need your help with this situation.

    We URGENTLY need your help with this situation. Please view the attached utube video of Cindy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbNZbxBq-n0) and do the following:

    1. Urge Cindy’s State Senator, Shannon Jones at S…@senate.state.oh.us (phone = 614-466-9737), and State Representative Ron Maag at dist…@ohr.state.oh.us (phone = 614-466-6023) to help her.
    2. While you’re at it, forward it with a plea to Governor Strickland by completing the contact information at http://www.governor.ohio.gov/Assistance/ContacttheGovernor/tabid/150/Default.aspx or calling 614-466-9354.
    3. Asking your own representatives for assistance with this may help Cindy too (www.legislature.state.oh.us).
    4. Finally, send this to anyone you know who can help us, particularly if they have paid into one of the five Ohio public retirement systems (PERS, SERS, STRS, OP&F, SHPRS) – these folks in particular should know of the dangers posed by their own disability and retirement systems should they become disabled, like our client Cindy.

    THANK YOU FOR ANYTHING YOU CAN DO!

    Sincerely,
    Stacy A. Martz, Ph.D.
    Executive Director
    PLAN of Southwest Ohio, Inc.
    plan…@fuse.net


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