Well, if you meet the criteria there are ways to refinance through the federal Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP. Thos program typically allows qualified borrowers to refinance a loan that is from 105% to as high as 125% of a home's value. Wait! Not every underwater loan qualifies for HARP. First, you need to be Behind On Mortgage Modification in Massachusetts and should be on the road to foreclosure to qualify. As a matter of fact, any delinquent payments in the past 12 months will automatically disqualify you from eligibility. To put it simply- your sheer ability to take the ultimate advantage of HARP however depends on your payment history.
Well, while the Loan Modification Program in Massachusetts might be a good option for some, still there are certain guidelines. For example, the home must be a primary residence, the mortgage must be less than $729,750, the current monthly payment must be more than 31 percent of your current gross income, and above all you should be able to demonstrate that you are having difficulty making the payments.
Typically the Foreclosure Prevention and Assistance in Massachusetts also has a trial period for 90 days after which the lender reassesses the borrower's situation to ponder on whether or not he qualifies for the long-term modification.
Now, the crucial part – what happens to the underwater borrowers who don't qualify for HARP or HAMP? Well, sadly there are no other government-backed refinancing options still they should avail some other kind of loan restructuring with their lender, without a government-backed program.
Whatever you do, do not wait for the foreclosure notice and if you feel that restructuring the loan is not an option, ask about the possibility of a short sale. The bottom line is you need to be proactive to save your home.
This content has been taken from: http://www.zimbio.com/Mortgage+Loans/articles/JFKLDx1lyus/Loan+Modification+program+Massachusetts+underwater?add=True