Forbearance is NOT Forgiveness

What a time, friends.  I hope you all are safe and healthy.  I’ve been talking to many of my clients this week and watching what’s being shared on social media.  There is a lot of concern over what happens over the next few months out there.  People want to know how they will pay their bills!  There is an NPR article being widely circulated that states that people can seek up to a year’s worth of mortgage relief.  I’m seeing friends and loved ones share this and celebrate.

Well, I hate to rain on your parade, but that article isn’t what you think it is.  I did some real research on this myself today.  I personally have four mortgages, which are serviced by two providers.  Both providers had links to “COVID 19 relief effort” information on their main pages.  I clicked the links and read through what was being offered, and it turns out it’s forbearance.  It’s not a pause on payments, which is what people want.  It doesn’t mean that you get to stop paying and pick back up where you left off in a couple of months.  It actually works like this:

Say you have a $2,000 a month mortgage payment.  You have been laid off due to all of the closures from COVID 19 and you need some relief.  So you talk to your lender and they allow you to stop paying your mortgage for six months.  During that time, you find a new job and start to get some money together again and you accumulate $5,000 since you aren’t paying your mortgage.  That’s all great news.  Now, month seven rolls along and your forbearance period is over.  The bank says you owe them $14,000, due immediately.  You managed to pull together $5,000, but you’re still short $9,000.  At this point the bank can issue a foreclosure notice because you owe them money you can’t pay.

Friends, I don’t write this to scare you.  We are all in this together and we will get through it.  It is going to be ok!  But I urge you to really research your options before jumping into a situation that might damage you down the line.  What we need is a true pause on both mortgages and rent payments right now.  Please call your senators and elected officials!  Make your voices heard.  If you find yourself in a tough position, I am here to talk.  We can strategize and plan together.  You are NOT alone.  Reach out to me any time, we are in this together.

xoxo,

Kim

Kim Parmon

Principal Broker | Earth Advantage Certified | OR

She/Her

Kim Parmon Principal Broker  Lead Listing Agent Earth Advantage Certified | OR kim@livingroomre.com Oregon is the fifth state that Kim has called home in her life, and this one is sticking!  After moving multiple times in her childhood, Kim fully understands how empowering homeownership and having roots is.  She loves waking up every day in this beautiful place and wants everyone to experience what it feels like to live in their dream home. As a kid, Kim spent her free time wandering through open houses and exploring construction sites for the fun of it.  After careers in the professional ballroom dance world, the entertainment industry, and the service industry, Kim stumbled into real estate as both a passion and a profession through the purchase of her first bungalow.  After renovating it with her husband and selling it for enough of a profit to pay off their debt as well as buy a new house to live in, everything clicked: she decided to get her real estate license and help her community experience the emotional and financial benefits of homeownership.  Kim put down roots in Portland in 2015 and has cultivated a referrals-based business throughout the years.  She understands that real estate is a service and the experience she gives her clients is first-rate.  She works hard to anticipate needs.  She is responsive, thorough, empathic, and a skilled negotiator who enjoys market analytics and strategy as much as she enjoys connecting with her clients.  Her ethics and reputation are the cornerstones of her business and the happiness of her clients is the yardstick that she measures success against. Kim merged her business with the best agents in Portland at the beginning of 2022, which has allowed her to give her clients more resources, more advocacy, and a top-notch real estate experience.  She is honored to be a part of her incredible team and feels lucky to go to work every day. In her free time, you'll find Kim enjoying lazy evenings by the fire with her husband, daughter, and rescue dogs.  She loves dancing, live music, exploring all of the beautiful places around us in the PNW, enjoying a cider and a good meal with friends, and browsing Powell's for a great new book. Andee Ziegler  Licensed Listing Team Operations Manager andee@livingroomre.com Loving where you live will change your life. Everyone deserves that joy. For me, real estate has been a way of nurturing my community and doing what I can to help people find stability, grow generational wealth, and create a little space of their own in the world. For 15 years I found the most joy in helping first-time homebuyers, guiding my peers through their first major investment and dreaming up what home means for them. I’ve done restoration work on homes from a variety of eras, 1894 Victorian farmhouse to classic 1950’s ranch. I enjoy empowering new homeowners with the knowledge I’ve garnered over the years, from systems to finishes.  In 2022 I joined forces with some of the best realtors in the biz and shifted my focus to operation management for listings. This welcome change opened up space in my life: more cake, less pants.   Andee Zeigler | Licensed Listing Team Operations Manager | andee@livingroomre.com Jessica LeDoux | Lead Buyer Agent | Broker Licensed in Oregon | jessica@livingroomre.com  Karim Alaeddine | Operations | Principal Broker Licensed in Oregon | karim@livingroomre.com  Jenessa VanZutphen | Buyer Operations Manager | Licensed in Oregon | jenessa@livingroomre.com 

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