Wachovia mortgage relief sets bank service standard in San Diego County
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Company adds field service personnel to assist distressed homeowners by Brian Flock
Distressed home owners with a Wachovia or World Saving home loan in San Diego County can breathe a little easier heading into 2010. Wachovia (which bought World Savings and which was itself acquired by Wells Fargo) has just rolled out its successful short sale program throughout San Diego County. The new program is targeted to previous borrowers with hardships that prevent them from qualifying for a loan modification.
Wachovia’s enhanced customer service program called the Wachovia Short Sale is even more progressive than Obama administrations new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative (HAFA) program (which won’t begin until April 5, 2010). The key differentiator to the Wachovia program is local field customer service personnel employed by Wachovia whose job it is to work with borrowers and real estate agents to find the best path to debt relief and relocation assistance, while avoiding foreclosure.
Unlike a typical short sale that can take from several months to over a year to complete, the Wachovia Short Sale program commits to 45 day closings on short sales with 38 days being the average according to sources at the company. This helps ensure that the new home buyers stay engaged with the sale and that the current home owner is relieved of their mortgage deficit.
Responses to purchase offers are generally provided within a week and relocation assistance is available to distressed home owners as necessary. This helps the home owners better preserve their credit score by avoiding lengthy closings. Owner relocation assistance of up to $5,000 by Wachovia has been reported in comparison to HAFA’s program that offers $1,500 to distressed borrowers.
Based on other new FHA lending programs offered by certain investors, Wachovia home owners with good credit but who are experiencing a hardship with their current mortgage may even qualify to purchase a new home immediately after the Wachovia Short Sale at today’s more affordable home pricing.