Business & Professional FINANCE Cia-riAit.g Far Tlet-o-sz WIeuto . C.444-e A Big Tip - Read Your Mail Cele/brat& f3 e,ewty A SPLorp4AA9 Ex4-rava9et4t,za , Tuesday, September 14 6 pm — 9 pm Neiman Marcus Somerset Collection South, Level One, Beauty Dept. Join us for Cocktails, Desserts & a look at Fall Beauty ...makeup consultations, hand treatments, skin care analysis, fashion & more! Lainie Lipschutz & Dana Loewenstein Tickets: 1/$5 or 6/$25 Beauty Basics by Neiman Marcus for you & 7 friends Destination: Beauty Sensation by Neiman Marcus custom spa package & lunch Wabeek Country Club Package 18 holes of golf & lunch for 4 Detroit Symphony Orchestra Tickets of your choice Much more! Proceeds to benefit the Dorothy & Peter Brown Jewish Community Adult Day Care Program for older adults with memory disorders RSVP by September 1st: Sharon Teweles at (248) 592-5028 J AIL tI p. l i ) Jewish Federation , afAcAWMAIMAwealp ELDE LIN WE PAW OF THE TEAM 1, 0 30 September 9 • 2010 iN he had allowed the home to go through the foreclosure process; his six-month redemption period had expired and the lender had obtained a judgment to evict them from the prem- ises. He had five days before their belongings were to be put on the street! When I asked him if his wife knew, he paused, and said, "No." Can you imagine? Five days forward, the court officer was heading there to throw all of their possessions onto the street and his wife didn't know. As it turned out, with great fortune and my enlist- ment of family help at the last possible moment, we were able to acquire the property and avoid the eviction. In this instance, the problem was averted; but I can tell you, it was a miracle. Had he called me before the foreclosure pro- cess started or right when it began, I'm certain I could have nego- tiated a successful loan modifica- tion, reducing the monthly payment and not subject- ing them to the risk and stress of virtually losing their home. All he needed to do was to face the problem. The bottom line: I suspect there are going to be many men who are annoyed with this column. If your loved one is making it home every day to get the mail, wake up. It's not because he can't bear to be away from you. He's hiding a significant issue that affects your life. The remedy? It's simple — read your mail. El I'm certain I could have negotiated a successful loan modification, reducing the monthly payment and not subjecting them to the risk and stress of virtually losing their home. Event Chairpersons Raffle Prizes I is 3 p.m. in the middle of a busy workday. Mr. Smith has managed to find a reason to stop by home and pick up the mail. This happens on Monday, Tuesday and, low and behold, it happens all six days a week. Wonder why? Is it because Mr. Smith loves his home life so much that he can't bear the thought of not being home when the mail comes? Is it because he's so excited that he is expecting the winning ticket from American Family Publishers? With Ed McMahon no longer with us, I'm sure this is not the reason. I'll tell you: Mr. Smith is hiding the mail from Mrs. Smith. Why is this so? Typically, it's one of three reasons. The payments on the mortgage are behind and the foreclosure pro- cess has begun. Or the IRS or the State of Michigan is sending threat- ening letters as a result of taxes that have not been paid. A third pos- sible reason: He's in default on vari- ous bank loans and the bank is sending let- ters to the home, threatening action against him and the wife as guaran- tors of the loan. Unfortunately, this is not a rare occurrence. I have encountered this horror story in my office countless times. Just last week, I received a panic call from a client who told me he was about to be evicted from his home. I paused because I knew this client owned his home and he had not con- tacted me for help as a result of the lender starting the foreclosure process. Why didn't he contact me sooner? The answer is that he was embar- rassed and afraid to face his wife and family. This was the extreme case. His head was so buried in the sand that Ken Gross is an attorney with Thav, Gross, Steinway & Bennett in Bingham Farms and host of the Financial Crisis Talk Center, a radio program that airs weekly at 9 on Saturday mornings on Detroit Sports Talk Radio 1130 AM.