LAS VEGAS-The key to dealing with 'walkaways' is preventing them in the first place, and that's why one CU is heading to the web to track down members in trouble.
Nevada FCU SVP-Mareting Greg Barnes said the CU has been "proactive" about offering loan modifications and providing options to members who are current on their mortgage but are upside down in their home.
"With Zillow.com and other online sources, it is relatively easy to identify those members with upside down loans," he said. "We send out 'Mortgage Modification Information' letters to those targeted upside down members and provide a direct 'Mortgage Loan Helpline' for them to call and get assistance."
To date, Barnes said Nevada Fed has been able to "manage" strategic defaults. However, he noted, "regular foreclosures" caused by unemployment and underemployment "have really hit us hard."
"Having mentioned all that, we do still hear that many Nevadans are thinking about just walking away from their upside down properties," Barnes reported. "With 70% of the homes in Las Vegas being underwater, if that does happen, it will be a big problem-maybe worse that what we've already gone through thus far."
