Jamilla Savannah

Jamilla Savannah is a single mom of four kids, three of whom are grown and an 8 year old son who lives with her. She’s always been proud to support her children, no matter their age, and in the past has worked for companies that offered nice paying jobs. However, after making some career changes, Savannah’s income was impacted and she fell on hard times. “I was trying to figure out who to turn to, I was trying to get myself together and save my home.”

Through a hotline, Savannah was referred to Affordable Housing Centers’ counselor, Fernando Leal. Fernando (pictured here at a foreclosure prevention event) took the time to figure out what was going on with Savannah’s account, discovering that the IRS had placed a lien on her house, which meant she couldn’t get the loan modification she needed to stay up to date on her mortgage payments.

“Without Fernando,” reflects Savannah, “I probably would have given up. I would have never had the information I needed to save my home if he wasn’t there to guide me through.”

Ultimately, it was a simple process to get the IRS to change the lien, but Savannah still needed support as she requested a loan modification from her mortgage company. “I had given them a big lump sum, I was doing everything that I could to try to save the house, and they kept saying no,” Savannah recalls. But Fernando wouldn’t let her take no for an answer, “He was just very matter of fact, saying we’re going to do this, don’t worry, I got you.”

The entire affair was long and stressful, taking about half a year to complete. Fernando was supportive throughout the entire process, calling Savannah back when she needed encouragement and support, even though he was very busy.

​In October 2021, Savannah successfully completed the loan modification process and was no longer on the trial payment. After the experience of saving her home, Savannah reflects that “you shouldn’t wait till last minute to ask for help when you’re in a situation because there are places out there that do provide help.”

“I’m just really grateful,” she says.