You may have to endure long telephone wait times, and there’s no guarantee you’ll get your way, but if you need a break on your mortgage payments or credit card bills due to hardships caused by COVID-19, there’s a very good chance you’ll get one — if you ask.
More than 90% of people who asked their mortgage lender or credit card issuer for breaks have been successful, according to a recent survey by LendingTree. Of the 30% of homeowners or cardholders who asked for relief, 91% of homeowners were granted reprieves because of the outbreak and 91% of cardholders, too. Among the latter, 67% got a break on every card they asked about and another 24% got a break on some of their cards. Many mortgage lenders deferred payments for three months, while breaks extended by credit card issuers ranged from reduced interest rates and reduced minimum payments to extended payment deadlines, waived late fees and higher credit limits.
“Reaching out to your lender and asking for help is absolutely, positively worth your time,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst for LendingTree.
“Our survey results show that the vast majority of folks who take the time to reach out are getting some help,” Schulz said. “For folks struggling financially in the wake of this outbreak, that’s a big deal … . Make the call.”
Oklahomans are finding financial reliefMidwest City native and Aledo, Texas, resident Tami Thomas Druzba said she got three months of no car payments for her boss, just by calling an automated system.
“I didn’t even have to talk or provide evidence of anything,” said Druzba, noting the deferred payments were tacked on the end of the car loan.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma City native and Portland, Oregon, composer and songwriter Timothy O’Brien was granted deferrals on a student loan and breaks on a credit card, after he called the servicers and explained that he lost gig work because of COVID-19 and his husband lost his job at a bookstore.“I was told all was good after proving redundancy, but I’m still being charged late fees from the credit card company and getting calls from them as if they never did anything,” O‘Brien said. “It’s very frustrating and infuriating, especially since they just keep saying they can’t refund or cancel late fees.”
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