A family of five from Saugus facing foreclosure on their home of 12 years has been to hell and back after having their loan sold off twice, their on-time payment returned and their latest servicer allegedly refusing to inform them how to submit their first payment.

In the midst of this nearly year-long fight to save his home, Steve Yu also suffered a stress-induced stroke, putting him out of work while he recovers from its life-altering impacts.

Steve Yu looks at a document from his second bank stating his loan modification was granted back in November 2016.

“People shouldn’t have to go through all this,” Yu told KHTS on Monday, which was the original foreclosure date he says he was given by Shellpoint Mortgage due to nonpayment. “I don’t wish it upon anybody — not even my worst enemy.”

With the help of Richard Szerman of Alta Realty Group — who offers free foreclosure defense services for homeowners like Yu — the foreclosure date was reportedly extended by 30 days the same morning the Yus thought they had to leave their home, Feb. 27.

Then, after KHTS made calls to the company Wednesday requesting a comment for this story, Szerman says he received the phone call he’s been waiting for for months.

“This is a bureaucratic snafu that we’ve been trying to get fixed for the better part of three months, and were getting absolutely nowhere,” Szerman said Thursday. “And then (KHTS) made a call and suddenly — when they were asked to report to the press, asked to comment — all of a sudden it all got fixed.”

Both Szerman and Yu hope that by sharing the Yu family’s harrowing story, they can help others in similar situations.

Richard Szerman of Alta Realty Group explains the Yu family’s situation the same day the Yus expected to lose their home.

It all started back in May 2016, when the Yus say they were granted a loan modification by Bank of America, though Yu alleges that bank officials never sent him any documents verifying the change.

Before the modification could even be implemented, the loan was then sold to a servicer called Specialized Loan Servicing, or SLS, which Szerman noted would not honor the previously approved modification.  

“We spent the better part of a year arguing with SLS,” Szerman explained, noting that Alta Realty Group was able to get the modification re-instated with the documentation to prove it. “(The Yus) were told to make their first payment by Dec. 31, and they would do a three-month trial period, which is very typical.”

The Yus maintain that they made their first payment to SLS in full well before the due date, only to have their check returned to them around the same time they were notified that the loan had been sold yet again to a third company, Shellpoint Mortgage Servicing.

“Ever since that time, we have on an almost daily basis been contacting SLS and Shellpoint trying to simply get an address or a protocol as to how they can pay their trial period so as not to fall out of the loan modification,” Szerman said.

An official from Shellpoint Mortgage Servicing declined to comment for this story, citing confidentiality and privacy reasons. Officials from Bank of America and Specialized Loan Servicing did not return requests for comment as of 2 p.m. Thursday.

As Yu’s wife, Ressel, became more and more frustrated with the situation — living in constant fear that they would be chased out of their own house — Yu took it upon himself to handle the burden alongside Szerman.

“My wife couldn’t handle the stress anymore,” Yu said. “I’ve been dealing with it by myself because I can’t tell her. Because if I tell her, she starts to cry, so I try to keep it inside.”

The stress also proved to be too much for Yu, and he suffered a stroke on Feb. 3 — 10 days before the family says they were officially notified that Shellpoint intended to foreclose on their home due to non-payment.

“I’ve called and called and called, and nothing — no response,” Yu said, noting he feels he’s been treated “like a criminal” throughout the process. “I’ve had stress before, but nothing like this… We’re always wondering, do we have a house to come home to or not?”

Now out of work while he goes through rehab, forced to re-learn things he used to take for granted, like speech and motor function, Yu says he was losing his will to keep fighting.

“At one point, I told Rich (Szerman), ‘Let them have the house. I’m done,’” Yu recalled. “We were ready to give up, and he’s keeping us going. We’re hanging on by a thin thread.”

Though the Yus felt defeated, Szerman remained confident that the banks in question would not get away with what he called a “commonplace” attempt to “steal” the Yu family’s home.

“I wish I could tell you that this particular situation was unique; unfortunately it’s not — this is completely commonplace,” Szerman said Monday. “With KHTS’ help and making this sort of thing public, I’ve very very sure the bank will change their mind.”

And Szerman was right. When a Shellpoint official contacted him on Wednesday following KHTS’ requests for comment, Szerman noted that the representative “apologized profusely” and said “they are going to go ahead and honor the trial period and they are going to do all the stuff that they should have been doing for the last three months.”

Further, Szerman says the rep claimed that the company’s records showed no attempts at contact by Szerman, his office or the Yu family until the day of the planned foreclosure, Feb. 27.

“That’s ridiculous,” Szerman said. “That’s completely untrue, and again, another good reason to get a third party involved… We have documented proof of everything — we keep logs of everything we do, every time we send a fax, every time we send an email. We keep copies of everything, so it’s very, very easy to prove that we’ve been in communication with the bank.”

By sharing Yu’s story, Szerman’s goal of saving the family’s home was successful, and now he is encouraging anyone in similar circumstances to take advantage of the free resources available to them and fight.

“Most people (think) if a large bank is choosing to come after you and they have multi-trillion dollar budgets, and you’re Bob and Susie Smith of Santa Clarita, how the heck are you supposed to go toe to toe with those people?” Szerman said. “I’m here to tell you, you can do it — you can do it for free and you can win. We do it every day.”

When asked what words of advice Yu has for others facing a similar battle, he recommended they first turn to Szerman for help, and then write letters to their elected officials to raise awareness in hopes of creating change.

“Tell them what the banks are doing to people — I can’t be alone. I’ve talked to some people and I know a lot of people that are going through similar situations,” Yu said. “I feel bad for each and every one of them because I know what they’re going through, I can honestly say, and I don’t wish it upon anybody.”

To contact Richard Szerman of Alta Realty Group for free foreclosure defense services, call 661-253-3000, email richszerman@gmail.com or click here.