Free Mortgage Hardship Letter
A free, fillable letter asking your mortgage servicer to review you for help. No purchase, no sign-up, no strings.
Your home is more than an address.
It’s where your family gathers. Where the holidays happen. Where you come back to at the end of the hardest days. So when something you never saw coming — a layoff, a diagnosis, the loss of someone you love — puts that home at risk, the fear can take your breath away. And the words to ask for help can be the hardest words of all.
So we wrote them for you.
A clear, respectful letter asking your mortgage servicer, in writing, to review you for help. Free. No purchase. No sign-up. No strings.
Download the free letter (PDF) →
Why ask in writing
Most mortgage servicers have ways to help homeowners through a hardship: a pause or reduction in payments, a plan to catch up, moving missed payments to the end of the loan, or a permanent change to the loan. But you usually have to ask, and then apply. A written request creates a dated record that you asked, and it gets the review started. The sooner you ask, the more options you usually have.
What’s inside
- The letter, ready to type into or print, with checkboxes for what happened and the help you’re asking for
- Step-by-step instructions: what to have ready, where to send it, and what happens next
- Your options in plain language, from forbearance to a loan modification
- A list of what servicers usually ask for, so you can be ready
- A contact log to track every call, letter, and upload
- How to spot a foreclosure-rescue scam
Three things you can do today
- Download the letter, fill it in, sign it, and send it to the correspondence address on your mortgage statement. Keep proof that you sent it.
- Call a free HUD-approved housing counselor at 800-569-4287, or find one by ZIP code at consumerfinance.gov/find-a-housing-counselor. Foreclosure counseling is always free.
- Watch your mail for your servicer’s application, and send back everything it asks for as quickly as you can.
Never pay anyone upfront to save your home. Real help is free. Walk away from anyone who asks for a fee before your servicer has made you a written offer you’ve accepted, guarantees they can stop a foreclosure, or tells you to stop talking to your servicer. That’s why this letter is free, too.
Have a foreclosure notice, a sale date, or court papers? Call a HUD-approved housing counselor today at 800-569-4287, or contact legal aid through LawHelp.org. A letter does not stop a foreclosure or a court deadline.
Struggling with other bills, too?
A hardship rarely touches just one bill. If the hospital, the electric company, a car lender, or your landlord is part of the picture, our Hardship Requests can help you ask each one in writing. See Hardship Requests → This letter is free whether or not you ever use our services.
The Response Desk™ is a writing service, not a law firm or housing counseling agency, and is not affiliated with any government agency, lender, or servicer. This free letter is general information, not legal advice. We don’t review, tailor, or send mortgage letters, and we don’t offer paid mortgage services. Your servicer decides whether to offer help and may not agree to change your loan.