Hi, my name is John with U.S. Bank. And today we're talking with Katie from our Mortgage Servicing Division about options that we have for our U.S. Bank Mortgage Customers. Hi, Katie. 

Hi, John. 

So Katie, first and foremost, what do we want our customers to know right now? 

Here at U.S. Bank, it is our top priority to keep you, our valued customers, in your home with affordable monthly payments. We know that there's a lot of confusing information out there right now regarding mortgage forbearance plans. We want to demystify those myths and ensure that you've got accurate information and resources to help you through this difficult time. 

OK, great so let's tackle some of those myths right off the top. Is a lump sum payment required at the end of a forbearance plan? 

This is an important one. It is not. We have programs available to our customers to help them move into affordable monthly payments when the forbearance is over. 

Does a customer have to prove financial hardship in order to qualify? 

They do not. They simply need to reach out to us, let us know that they're impacted. We're here to help them and put them on a forbearance plan. 

OK, great, thank you. So let's dig into some of the details here. Number one, what options are available for customers? And how does a customer get assistance? 

Sure thing. So the CARES Act allows customers to enter into a forbearance period for up to 180 days, so that would be up to 180 days of payment suspension. In the event a customer is still experiencing financial hardship at the end of that initial 180 days, they are eligible to request an additional extension up to another 180 days to give them the time that they need to improve their financial situation. They simply need to reach out to us, either through our mobile app, online, or they can call us, let us know they're impacted, and we'll put them on the forbearance plan. 

OK, so what happens to those suspended payments during the forbearance plan? 

Good question. Those suspended payments are going to continue to show up on your mortgage statement. Once you're ready to resume making your monthly payments, we will work with you on what programs are available, some of which include taking those suspended payments, putting them to the back of the loan or taking the suspended payments, putting them in the loan and extending your term. 

Another term that is out there, Katie, is deferment. What is the difference between forbearance and deferment? 

And this is another important distinction. A forbearance is a temporary plan to assist a customer who has a short term hardship in either reducing or suspending their monthly payments for a duration of time. A deferment takes suspended payments and puts them to the back of a loan. This is something that's normally done when a customer is ready to resume making their monthly payments. 

OK, so once a customer is on a forbearance plan, what type of support do we offer to them through that process? 

When we activate the forbearance plan for our customers, they're going to receive a letter from us. The letter is going to outline the terms of the forbearance, and it's also going to provide them with contact information for their personal relationship manager. This individual is there to guide them through the process, answer any questions they might have, and will talk through options that are available when customers are ready to resume making their monthly payments. 

OK, what about late fees? Are any late fees charged during the suspended payments? 

No, we do not charge late fees during the forbearance plan. 

OK, and then again what happens at the end to those payments? How does a customer make those up if not a lump sum? 

So again, we're going to stress that the lump sum is not necessary at the end of the forbearance plan, right? We are here to work with folks based on their financial situation. There's going to be a couple avenues that customers can reach out to us either through usbank.com or they can reach out to their personal relationship manager to let us know that they're ready to resume making their monthly payments. 

We can either take the suspended payments and put them at the back of the loan or take those suspended payments, put them inside the loan, and change the term. 

OK, so what about taxes, insurance, HOA fees, condo fees, what happens with those during the forbearance plan? 

If you're currently paying your taxes, insurance, and condo fees on your own, you need to keep doing so. In the event that U.S. Bank is making those payments for you on your taxes, insurance, and condo fees through your escrow portion of your mortgage payment, we will keep making those payments for you. 

What if a customer has the ability or decides to make a payment or payments while on a forbearance plan? 

Yep. Good question. If you're able to make a payment, we certainly encourage you to do so. If you're able to make your contractual monthly payment, your regular monthly payment, it's going to post to your account like it normally does. In the event you still want to send in some money, but you're unable to make your full payment, we're still going to encourage you to do so. 

Those funds are going to sit in a suspense account. That money will sit in a suspense account until a full contractual payment is made, and then that will get posted to your account like it normally does. The suspense account does not earn interest unless it's required by law and as part of your loan agreement. 

So Katie, another question we're seeing, if a customer has a sustained reduction in income, what can we do to help them? 

If a customer has a sustained reduction in income because of the crisis, we are here to help them. And we're going to talk to them about a modification, which is a change in terms. The objective of the modification is to reduce their monthly payment to better align with their current financial situation. 

Katie, this has been a ton of great information. I'm sure we're not going to answer everyone's questions right now though. So where can folks go to find more information or if they have a question? 

We encourage customers to go to our U.S. Bank mobile app. You can also reach out to on usbank.com. If you go to the COVID link at the top of our home page, that will take you to resources available that will answer more questions or direct you on how to request or forbearance plan. Or you can always call us at 1-800-365-7900. 

So Katie, we've covered a lot today. What would you want a customer watching this video, what do you want them to take away? 

I'd have three takeaways for our customers. One, you are not going to be required to repay all of the suspended payments at once at the end of the forbearance plan. We have programs available to you that will put you in affordable monthly payments. Second, you have a personal relationship manager who is going to assist you every step of the way, explaining how forbearance plans work, what your options are after the forbearance plan, and answer any questions you might have. 

And then last but not least, I really just want to extend our heartfelt thanks to our valued customers for their patience and flexibility during this evolving time. We hope that our customer assistance programs will assist them as they work to improve their financial situation. 

Well, Katie, thank you so much for your time today, a lot of really great helpful information here. I really appreciate it 

Thanks, John. 

And again, for more information on how we can help you through this time, the best place to go is usbank.com to visit our COVID-19 resources which you can find right at the top of our home page. Thanks for watching today and have a great day.