As some of you know, I’ve been battling a disease called Sarcoidosis. This rare, auto-immune disease has no cure, yet it affects over 17,000 people in the United States and we know of at least 20 folks in Southern Arizona who suffer as well. (resource: www.inspire.com)
So far, my disease has left me with 42% lung capacity, blurred vision, hearing problems, coordination issues and very painful joints. I have been home, unable to work since March of 2010.
Towards the later part of March 2010, I filed for Social Security Disability and was denied. I am currently working with an attorney to re-file and the process is long. We, my wife and I, also filed for a mortgage reduction through the government’s “Making Homes Affordable”. Our mortgage company is Bank of America. We filled out all of the paperwork and were told on March 13th that “all is in order and your application is now with underwriting”.
While waiting for answers from Bank of America we received notice that our $1400 per month mortgage would increase to $1900 per month. Seeing that we applied for mortgage relief, why would they increase our monthly mortgage by $500? When we called for answers they said the increase was to cover taxes and insurance – both of which we paid and have always paid on our own. Our plea for relief fell on deaf ears and we were told that we had to pay the increased amount. We paid for a few months and then we were offered some advice from a representative at BofA: “if you continued to pay your mortgage, the underwriters for the “Making Homes Affordable” program would not make a decision since you appear to be able to pay.”
Getting to the point where we would have to borrow money to pay our mortgage we decided to stop paying. Six months later, Bank of America states that our application is still pending. In the meantime, over the past three business days, we have received a total of 64 notices of foreclosure with an auction date of March 30, 2011.
I continue to call Bank of America daily and they continue to tell us that our application is still pending and that the foreclosure and sales issues reside in a different department.
It is important to know that we aren’t one of those families who bought a home they couldn’t afford. We moved here from the Boston area in 2006. We put $74,000 down as down payment for the home. At the time our mortgage was $1400 per month and our monthly income was over $5,000.00. Since I’ve become sick and unable to work my wife has bared the brunt of working to support us. She earns about $1200 per month, we are on food stamps and have health insurance through Arizona’s ACCCS program and we are very grateful for both programs.
Prior to falling ill, I owned and operated my own handyman services company, Mark the Handyman. This was a very successful, growing business that contributed to the success of many other tradespeople. My electrician, plumber, general contractor, flooring installer and HVAC contractor all benefited greatly from my referrals to great customers here in the Vail and Tucson areas. Mark the Handyman was very active in the Greater Vail Chamber of Commerce as well.
In addition to my business I was also involved in the Stephen Ministry program where I was the leader at Desert Skies United Methodist Church. I was also involved in the city-wide Stephen Ministry program which included 18 churches from around the Tucson area. Stephen Ministry is a program of volunteers helping those in crisis. More can be learned by visiting www.stephenministry.org. I’ve also started and now chair the Sarcoidosis Support Group of Southern Arizona. Here we talk about our treatments, our challenges and explore resources. I’ve also served as our neighborhood’s representative to our HOA with hopes of building a solid, caring community in our neighborhood.
Side note: We moved here from Boston for the drier climate. You see, I was hit by a truck as a pedestrian back in 2003. The accident resulted in permanent nerve damage. Though I was encouraged to file for disability then, I thought it imperative that I use the skills I had acquired to help others while making a living.
I share this very personal information with hopes of showing others that they are not alone. Additionally, we are seeking help from anyone who can. Today, we’ve contacted both Representative Giffords’ office as well as Senator McCain’s office and are awaiting their response.
We've also sent this information to our local news channel, KVOA-TV as well as the local newspaper, Arizona Daily Star.
If you have any questions or suggestion, here's our contact info:
Mark & Charlene Dec
162 East Forrest Feezor Street
Vail, AZ 85641
520-668-7425
handyman@markdec.com
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