If you have taken up a mortgage, and you are really struggling (for one unfortunate reason or another) to keep up with the monthly payments, you will probably be advised to consider undertaking mortgage modification. The modification is designed to make it easier for you to make the repayments, so you and you're the lender have to sit down together and have another talk about the mortgage terms. It sounds like a good deal. That is usually how it does turn out. But this type of modification will not come cheap; it will cost you. You need to have full awareness of its direct and indirect cost, before making the decision on whether it is a process you ought to undertake or not.

The first thing you should take into account is the fee you'd have to pay for the sessions on credit counseling that you may have to take in order to fully evaluate your need for loan modification. Although you know that the option of mortgage loan modification is available to you, you may not have enough knowledge on how to go about the whole process. Thus, you would have no choice but to avail of the services of any of the firms who provide advisory services regarding this matter. It is common knowledge that these financial advisors do not perform their services at cheap rates. All said and done, you may end up having spent a very sizeable amount of money on 'advice' alone, before even getting started on the actual mortgage loan modification process.

You would also be spending on the cost of services provided by the companies who specialize in negotiating with lenders on modified terms of mortgage loans. These negotiations can be tough, and although there is a provision for borrowers to negotiate directly with lenders, professional help does become necessary in many cases. In some cases, a specialized attorney would have to be hired since he would be the one responsible for drawing the necessary documents for the modification and defend it, should the need arise.

Your financial difficulties notwithstanding, these professionals would demand immediate payment for their services. Nothing is free in this world, not even the services of those companies that claim to offer loan modifications at no charge. These companies will still be able to somehow find a way to earn money as they provide their loan modification services for you. You wouldn't have this problem if you decide to negotiate the mortgage yourself. However, if you engage a third party to do it for you, you should expect to incur some costs.

The costs of mortgage modification would also be increased by the interest, which would be greater once the loan has been approved for modification. Often, lenders would see to it that the new terms of the loan would be outrageously leaning to their favor. A mortgage loan modification arrangement may translate into smaller monthly repayments being demanded from you. But chances are that it will also translate into a situation where the total amount of money you repay in the long run to the lender(s) is much higher than would have been the case had you opted not to modify. You can add that to the total cost that you would end up shouldering due to the mortgage loan modification.