The Mortgage Professor

Mistakes in Managing the Mortgage

Take out a mortgage for the express purpose of getting a tax deduction

Fail to check if the lender is crediting payments (especially extra payments) properly.

Assume your credit won't be badly damaged if you skip just one payment.

Agree to co-sign for a friend or relative without considering all the implications.

When a financial reversal endangers your capacity to pay the mortgage, do nothing until the lender calls about your delinquency.

When you have excess funds to use to reduce principal on either of two mortgages, allocate the funds to the mortgage on which the largest percent of the current payment is being allocated to principal.

Taking a short-term second mortgage when you can no longer make the payments on the first mortgage, and your credit is shot, but you still have equity in the property.

When you receive notice of an increase in required escrow payments that you know is a mistake, don't pay it.

Throw out mortgage servicing statements after a year or two.

Let the first ARM rate adjustment catch you by surprise.

Stop paying the mortgage in anticipation of the sale of the home.

When you can't afford the upcoming payment on an ARM, wait for the lender to approach you about modifying the contract.

Respond to a solicitation from someone promising to get your mortgage modified.

Limit yourself to a single trade line j