 TITLE: How Can Mortgage Forbearance Help Me Pay My Mortgage? CONTENT: How Does a Mortgage Forbearance Work?\n-------------------------------------\nMortgage forbearance is for homeowners who are or will be delinquent on their mortgages due to a temporary financial hardship, though lenders each have their own policies and terms for how they handle it. The terms of forbearance can also vary depending on what type of loan you have, but you will usually have one of two options: either your payments will be reduced or they will be suspended altogether for a set time period. The lender will agree not to foreclose on your home during this time, which can last for a few months or up to a year, as long as you abide by their terms.\nThe forbearance agreement will outline your obligations, which usually means resuming your usual full mortgage payment once the forbearance period ends. Your debt is simply deferred, not forgiven, so you will also be responsible for paying the amounts you missed during the forbearance period. Some lenders require you to pay the entire amount at once when the period is over.\nIn other words, if your payments were paused for six months, you might owe six months of mortgage payments in one lump sum. Other lenders might give you some time to repay the missed amounts, so find out the terms and make sure you'll be able to afford to repay this amount before you move forward with forbearance. If your forbearance period ends and the hardship you've experienced isn't yet resolved, some lenders may extend your forbearance to give you a little more time.\nA mortgage forbearance is intended to provide temporary relief if, for example, you've had a health emergency, lost your job or experienced a natural disaster. If you can't pay your mortgage because of bigger financial problems, such as an interest rate that's too high, a forbearance isn't a viable solution since you will have to resume your payments once the forbearance period ends. In that case, it might make more sense to look into a loan modification, which is a permanent change to your mortgage loan to make it more affordable. END