Good Faith Effort by Creditor to Avoid Foreclosure

A creditor shall be presumed to have acted in good faith to avoid foreclosure if, prior to causing publication of notice of a foreclosure sale, the creditor satisfies the provisions of M.G.L. c. 244, § 35B(b)(2) and further completes the following: (1) Determination of Affordable Monthly Payment. Determines a borrower’s current ability to make an affordable monthly payment in accordance with the affordability guidelines and standards set forth under at least one of the defined modified mortgage loan programs; (2) Determination of Borrower Eligibility. Identifies each of the loan modification program(s) for which the borrower may be eligible to obtain a modified mortgage loan; (3) Delivery of Written Notice. Delivers a written notice to the borrower, concurrently with the Right to Cure Notice required under 209 CMR 56.03(1), of the borrower’s right to request a modified mortgage loan in compliance with 209 CMR 56.05(1). The written notice must clearly identify the documents and information the creditor will require the borrower to submit with any modified mortgage loan request for the creditor to consider such request complete and to permit the creditor to deliver the written assessment requirement under 209 CMR 56.05(6). A creditor shall exercise reasonable diligence in obtaining documents and information from the borrower to complete a loan modification application; (4) Borrower Access to Submitted Documents. Provides prompt access to the borrower, upon request, to all documents and information submitted in connection with a modified mortgage loan request; (5) Determination of Completion of Borrower’s Response. Promptly reviews the documents and information submitted by the borrower in connection with a modified mortgage loan request, identifies any missing or incomplete information, and within five business days following receipt of the borrower’s loan modification application, the creditor provides the borrower with written notice informing the borrower of the following: (a) The creditor has received the borrower’s response, deemed the response complete, and the date by which the creditor will be required to provide the borrower with its assessment, in writing, pursuant to 209 CMR 56.05(6); or (b) The additional information that is required from the borrower for the creditor to complete its assessment and the date by which the information must be submitted to the creditor; (6) Net Present Value Analysis Results. In all circumstances where the net present value of the modified mortgage loan exceeds the anticipated net recovery at foreclosure, the creditor agrees to modify the loan in a manner that provides for the affordable monthly payment. In circumstances where the net present value of the modified mortgage loan is less than the anticipated net recovery of the foreclosure, or does not meet the borrower’s affordable monthly payment, the creditor notifies the borrower that no modified mortgage loan will be offered and provides a written summary of the creditor’s net present value analysis and the borrower’s current ability to make monthly payments; (7) Investigation of Alleged Errors. Maintains policies and procedures designed to timely investigate, respond to, and, as appropriate, correct any errors alleged by the borrower in the creditor’s preparation of the written assessment in calculating the following: (a) The determination of the borrower’s income, debts, assets and obligations; or (b) The creditor’s net present value analysis of the borrower’s mortgage loan; (8) Access to Creditor’s Representative. Provides access by telephone to the creditor’s representative assigned to implement the modified mortgage loan offer. If a borrower attempts to contact the creditor’s representative at the number included in the creditor’s written assessment and does not receive a live response from the assigned representative, the borrower must be able to record their contact information for a returned response from the creditor. The creditor must respond within a reasonable time to permit the borrower to submit a written response to the creditor’s modified mortgage loan offer within the prescribed 30 day period; and (9) Counteroffer Process. Clearly identifies any substantiating documentation the creditor will require the borrower to submit to support a counteroffer to the creditor’s modified mortgage loan offer and defines a reasonable period in which the borrower will be required to provide such substantiating documentation.