Q: My daughter was laid off in November and has tried without success to refinance her GMAC mortgage or have the monthly payment reduced. They won’t budge even though she still pays on time. What can she do? Didn’t GMAC get stimulus money?Wiltrud Nebgen, Denver
A: Critical to your daughter’s options is that she has no current income, save for unemployment.
The folks at GMAC were right to say she can’t refinance. That’s because they must have a steady income on which to base their decision, and without a job, she’s looking at a no-win situation.
The same is true for a loan modification, or changing the interest rate or monthly payment she makes, all of that a key component of President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus.
However, she does stand a chance by asking GMAC for a forbearance, which is a short-term leniency plan that offsets her monthly payments by up to six months. Essentially, the amount she owes is rolled to the back end of the loan. While she’ll have to pay slightly more and longer in the end, it frees her up from the encumbrance right now.
GMAC tells me they’ll need assurances she is actively hunting for work and plans to stay in the home. That said, GMAC will still need approval from its investors — which include Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and private concerns — before it will grant the forbearance. Nevertheless, it’s worth asking about.
Of note to readers: Many of you e-mailed to note that your Social Security numbers do indeed appear on your driver’s license, contrary to what the state Department of Revenue told me. Checking back with them, you were right.
The state has stopped putting the SSN on your license — it is not your license number — since 2003, though you could still have it there if you asked. In 2005, the legislature prohibited the number from appearing on any newly issued license. That means some still have it, though it’s not on the magnetic strip on the license back.
You can have a new license issued with the SSN removed from the face at no cost by visiting a license office.
