ASC Modification Story

[Joel Fraser]

Newbie (as of today). Current loan with Wells Fargo (serviced by ASC). House appraised for $1,250,000 for a June 2006 refi. Real estate broker told me 5 weeks ago the market value is ~$930,000. Mortgage amount as of today is $975,000. I know an appraisal today would be lower than the $1.250 million in 2006, but I don't know how much. (Any guesses would be entertained.)Lost my job last October 30, have run through minimal severance and 401K, and am in danger of being delinquent as of 9/15/08. Wife works, but salary net salary covers ~one third of the monthly mortgage.I called ASC yesterday and was told that they wouldn't talk to me until I was delinquent. I would rather be proactive and head off a delinquency, of course, but they wouldn't budge.Today I figured what the heck, I would call Wells Fargo and talk to them. There approach was a little different than ASC's. They will talk to me about a "moratorium" of 3 months, after I get my worksheets into them and it is assigned to a "negotiator". The assignment process would take about 10-15 days, so I figure it's possible that I could head off a delinquency if their timeline is accurate.Question is this: Has anybody else had this experience (going the moratorium route with Wells Fargo), and is it likely to be successful? If the answer is "no", what other advice can anyone give me? Thanks.