07 Nov Sacramento mortgage delinquency numbers rise as housing affordability pressures continue
When you hear on the news that Sacramento has a certain delinquency rate, that number is measuring something pretty specific. It usually comes from public loan-level data that tracks whether a borrower is thirty, sixty, or ninety-plus days past due, and whether the loan is in foreclosure or already owned by the bank. What it does not tell you is anything about your own situation. It is a countywide or regional snapshot, not a report card on your house. So if you are behind, don’t read those stories as a prediction about you. They are just an aggregate of how many people in the area are late, and they lag behind reality by a few months anyway.
The first practical step is to call your servicer. Not the company that originated the loan necessarily, but whoever sends you the statement and takes the payment. Call before you miss another one if you can. Tell them plainly that you are behind and ask what options they have. Ask them to note the call in your file and get the name and extension of whoever you talk to. Keep a written log of every call, the date, who you spoke with, and what they said. That log matters later if there is any dispute.
Forbearance is one thing they may offer. In simple terms it is a pause or reduction in payments for a set period, but it is not forgiveness. What happens when the pause ends depends on the program and your situation, and you need to ask specifically how the missed amounts will be repaid. Some arrangements spread it out, some require a lump sum, and some roll it into a modification. Get that answer in writing if you can.
Loan modification is a permanent change to the terms, like a lower rate or a longer term, to make the payment affordable. Whether you qualify depends on your income, your hardship, and the investor who owns the loan, so nobody can promise you an outcome. Ask what documents they need and send them complete the first time.
A HUD-approved housing counselor is free and on your side, and in Sacramento County you can reach one through the county or a local nonprofit. They will help you organize paperwork and talk to the servicer. If your situation involves taxes on forgiven debt, a CPA should weigh in, and if you are facing a foreclosure notice or a legal question, talk to a lawyer. Those are the first moves: call, log it, ask about forbearance and modification, and get a counselor.
For more on this, see mortgage delinquency in Sacramento.
