STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The biggest blow came last April when Syed Hassan lost his wife -- the mother of his three boys -- to lung cancer.

And now, another disaster looms: After almost a year of court battles, Hassan faces the specter of foreclosure.

Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is declining his mortgage adjustment on his Meiers Corners property issued through the Housing Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), a federal loan modification program designed to help homeowners stave off foreclosure.

CAN'T GET STRAIGHT ANSWER

And, despite repeated efforts, Hassan says he can't get a straight answer why.

After inquiries from the Advance this week, Wells Fargo said it's attempting to work things out.

One of the biggest unresolved issues is Hassan's application to assume the loan that was applied for by his late wife, Regina Noto-Fabrizio, an analyst for Atlantic Express. That request has been denied.

"There is not really a lot I can say, really due to privacy laws. Obviously the passing of Ms. Fabrizio is unfortunate. We have reached out to Mr. Hassan [Wednesday] to resolve this issue with him directly with the hope we can identify other options for him to retain his home," said Jim Hines, with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.

Hassan confirmed last Thursday that a representative from Wells Fargo Home Mortgage had been in touch with him to talk about reviewing the loan modification. This is more progress from Wells Fargo than what Hassan's attorney Adam Cohen, with non-profit MFY Legal Services, said he has seen thus far.

One example of the frustrations: A judge ordered Wells Fargo Home Mortgage last September to accept a $2,200 monthly trial loan modification payment plan, with the condition that if Wells Fargo denies the modification, it must do so "with specificity."

LIENS AGAINST HOME

In November 2010, Hassan received a one-page form with three boxes checked notifying him his "loan was not assumable." No other details were listed. Another letter followed several weeks later. This time the bank said the home had additional liens against it.

The liens turned out to be parking tickets, which Hassan later paid, according to court records and Cohen. Earlier this month, both parties were in court and again Wells Fargo denied the home modification request and declined to allow Hassan's name to be put on the loan, describing it as high risk, Cohen said.

"They haven't given any explanation of what is a high cost home loan. They don't give any information whatsoever," Cohen said. "A HAMP would modify the loan and not make it high risk."

HAMP lowers monthly mortgage payments to 31 percent of a person's verified monthly pre-tax income. Applicants need to provide evidence of economic hardship to qualify, according to a U.S. Department of Treasury website.

"What we're trying to avoid is a situation where a man loses his wife, and his three children lose their mother and they are thrown out on the streets for a hypertechnical reason," Cohen said.

There are many cases like Hassan's, where people have difficulty working with mortgage companies to get a loan modification, said Joseph Sant, with Staten Island Legal Services.

"There are not enough incentives for loan servicers to provide loan modifications," said Sant, who is not working on Hassan's case.

It is not in the best interest of loan servicers, like banks or mortgage companies, to do loan modifications. With a foreclosure, the loan servicers get paid first and can recoup most if not all of their expenses. With a loan modification, investors are paid first and the remainder is paid in increments to the loan servicer, he said.

EMBARRASSED, FRUSTRATED

For Hassan, a clerk at a local hospital, the process has been embarrassing and frustrating. He declined to be photographed for the story. "Only a few people in my family know what I am going through," he said. "I don't want people to think that I need charity. I have continued to make payments. I'm paying so I thought of course they are going to approve it."

Hassan said the only time he fell behind on his payments was from August 2009 to December 2009 when his wife was very ill.

"I was using that money to pay our medical bills," he said. "What do you think you would do if you were in my place? I lost a wife. Now, I have to lose a house. Where are we going to be? In the streets?"

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