The loan modification process can be quite intimidating. You have to fill out all kinds of paperwork, negotiate on terms with your lender, as well as write a letter stating hardship. Out of those three main steps, the letter is the most difficult to do on your own. To give you an idea of how your hardship letter should look, here is a sample loan modification hardship letter to give you some guidance:

To Whom It May Concern:

This letter is to formally follow up on my application for loan modification I sent in to you last week. The application states what we had and what we are looking for, but obviously does not go into how exactly we got into the situation we are in now.

There were severe cutbacks at my job in November and I was transferred to a lower paying position in the middle of other people getting laid off. I should be grateful, but the salary I receive in this position is ¾ of what I was previously making. It had gotten to a point where we were pulling from our savings and scraping change to be able to make our mortgage payments and pay the bills. Two months ago our interest rate went up from 7.45% to 10.35% as we have not been able to manage and keep up with our payments since.

I would like to request our interest rate be lowered to anywhere from 7.25% to 8.40%. We feel this is a fair number to both parties. We were always punctual with our payments before my demotion and my wife is due for a raise next month. We are willing to work with you in finding a compromise that we can both agree on.

Sincerely,

Your Name

It’s important to stick to the facts in these letters, and this sample loan modification hardship letter does not veer off from the point: I simply cannot afford the high interest rate in my current situation. Be sure you mention why you are having problems with your payments and make it clear that there is no way for you to be able to manage as you are now.

Also be sure to mention the rate you would like. Your lender doesn’t have time to sift through every application and determine the exact rates they want.

Stating the interest rate you’re looking for gives them even more of a reason to accept you, because you have determined the interest rate you can handle on your own. It also shows that you are worried enough to have done the work to determine your ideal rate. Use this sample loan modification hardship letter as an example and work around it. A good letter can make all the difference.