Everyone should ask their lender for a “forbearance.” That is the term used when a lender agrees to put off until later the payments due on your mortgage. Many lenders are helping homeowners during this time.
If your mortgage has federally backed financing from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, USDA, VA or FHA, you should be able to get a no-interest, no-fee COVID-19 forbearance if you are experiencing a hardship. Those months of payments will either be added to the end of your mortgage or you might qualify for some other option to lower your payments after the end of the forbearance if you still can’t afford your regular payments.
Some lenders may ask you to request the forbearance every three to six months along the way to verify that you still have a financial hardship.
For Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans:
- Generally, borrowers are entitled to COVID-19 forbearances of up to 12 months.
- But there is an extended forbearance of six additional months (in three-month increments) for anyone who requested their initial forbearance by February 28, 2021.
- There is no deadline to request your initial COVID-19 forbearance.
For FHA, VA and USDA loans:
- Generally, borrowers are entitled to COVID-19 forbearances of up to 12 months.
- But there is an extended forbearance of six additional months (in three-month increments) for anyone who requested their initial forbearance before June 30, 2020.
- You must request your initial COVID-19 forbearance before June 30, 2021.
If you do not have a federally backed mortgage:
Contact your mortgage servicer / lender. Ask if you can get more time to pay. Be sure to ask:
-
if you will be charged late fees, penalties or interest
-
if postponed payments will be recorded in your credit report
-
if you need to send any documents to show you are experiencing hardship due to the COVID-19 crisis.