A hardship letter is a letter written to your bank or mortgage company telling them why you can no longer afford to make the payments on your home. This letter describes your hardships and specifically what has happened that caused you to fall behind.

Based on the current credit environment, hardship letters are being used as a tool to help homeowners avoid foreclosure on their homes. The result can be a modification of the loan or the acceptance of a real-estate short sale by the bank.

Some basics to remember in writing your hard ship letter are to:
• Write the letter in your own words with feeling. Also show your appreciation for their time. A real person will be reading this.
• Be specific on your hardship. Good examples of hardships would be: A significant cut in pay or loss of employment, a medical issue that prevents you from working, or becoming a single parent with out child support.
• Provide the reason you fell behind on your monthly payments. Detail each delinquency with specific dates.
• Provide an offer to resolve the debt issue and show a willingness to cooperate in a solution to retain your home.
• Provide documents that show that your are having financial hardship. Examples could be recent late notices on bills, your taxes from the previous year and your bank statements.

For specific examples of a hardship letter you can use click here:  Sample Hardship Letter For Loan Modification