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Board-certified real estate attorney Gary M. Singer answers housing questions in this space each Friday. To ask him a question about short sales, mortgages, refinancing, homeowner's associations or any other residential real estate topic, click here.

Q: My dad passed away four years ago and my mom was scraping by working at a department store until recently, when she had to stop due to an illness. Although my mother has good credit, we have been unable to refinance or lower the payment. It makes no sense because we keep hearing about all of the programs out there to help people. But it seems that there is nothing for someone who needs it the most. Dave

A: Don't be so sure. There are many programs out there that can help reduce your loan payments. It comes down to four factors: math, persistence, luck and realistic expectations. By math, I mean that your income, bills, home value and mortgage must fit into one of your lenders programs. As for persistence, many people get turned down two or three times before they get approved, so if you stop trying youll never get the relief youre seeking. There is an element of luck involved in all of this. Did you randomly get a bank representative who will go the extra mile to help you, or the one who is in the middle of a divorce and hates his job? Finally, its important to have realistic expectations. I have seen many people turn down a terrific loan modification offer from the bank to wait it out for some magical solution thats never going to happen.

You need to get an idea of what type of relief that you may qualify for, and see if that relief will work for you. For example, if you earn $700 a month in Social Security as your only form of income and you are trying to modify a $300,000 mortgage, it is highly unlikely that you are going to be offered a solution because the math just doesnt work. If you earn $200,000 a year and are trying to modify your $190,000 mortgage, its doubtful that your lender is going to see things your way.

Q: Our mortgage is underwater and we would like to move out of the immediate area. I need some good advice. I'm reluctant to just pick up the phone an call anyone because I don't want to become a victim of a scam. Do I call a law firm? A real estate agent? A loan modification company? Who? Hal

A: Call a lawyer experienced in dealing with struggling homeowners. He or she will help you figure out a strategy that may involve a short sale or a loan modification. Each persons situation is unique and each situation should be dealt with individually. Do some Internet research to find out about lawyers in your area and then choose two or three to interview. Ask questions such as: How many cases have you handled similar to mine? Do you have any special training or certifications related to real estate law? You should also take to the appointment appropriate paperwork about your financial situation and your house. Bring proof of income for all wage earners, two years of tax returns, a recent mortgage statement, your tax bill, your insurance bill and any other paperwork that you think is pertinent to your individual case. Think about your goals. Attorneys are, by training, goal-oriented people, so tell the attorney about your goals so he or she can craft a custom plan that works for you. Bring reasonable expectations and a willingness to listen.

The information and materials on this blog are provided for general informational purposes only and are not intended to be legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is formed, nor should any such relationship be implied. Nothing on this blog is intended to substitute for the advice of an attorney, especially an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.

To follow Gary Singer on Twitter, click here.

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Ask a real estate pro: 4 keys to lower mortgage payments

NEW YORK, March 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Jalak Jobanputra, a prominent venture capitalist known for having backed companies with exits to AOL, IBM, Oracle and several IPOs, today announced that she has been named Managing Director and Founding Partner at RTP Ventures, a newly formed $120M fund closely associated with ru-Net, a Moscow-based $700M international investor.

With a vision of targeting innovative companies and differentiating technologies that will see tomorrow's growth, Jobanputra joins managing director Kirill Sheynkman at RTP Ventures' New York City headquarters. Jobanputra will focus on consumer internet, mobile, payments, e-commerce, and social enterprise deals.

"I am thrilled to join a team of investors who are dedicated to cross-border, global venture capital investing," said Jobanputra. "It is my goal, and that of my partners, to give entrepreneurs and startup companies greater access to a wide range of the best resources from a regional and global stance, regardless of where that market might be based."

Prior to joining RTP, Jobanputra served as Director of Emerging Market Mobile Investments at Omidyar Network, a fund founded by Pierre Omidyar, co-founder of eBay. Prior to that, Jobanputra was Senior Vice President at the New York City Investment Fund (NYCIF) where she managed technology and digital media venture investments. During her tenure at NYCIF, Jobanputra invested in technology start-ups including TxVia and Outside.in, later acquired by AOL. Additionally, Jobanputra spearheaded the formation of NYCSeed in 2008, committed to funding early stage NYC tech entrepreneurs. She began her venture career in 1999 in Silicon Valley at Intel Capital and was previously a startup founder and media and telecom investment banker.

Named one of 2010's Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business by the Asian American Development Center, Jobanputra is on the Board of Directors of the Center for an Urban Future and sits on the Executive Committee of the Social Investment Council of Echoing Green, among others. She serves as a Mentor for Techstars NYC, a Charter Member of TiE (The Indus Entrepreneurs) and an Advisory Board Member of Astia NYC. A frequent speaker at conferences including Mobile World Congress and TechCrunch Disrupt, Jobanputra has contributed to publications including Forbes and Business Insider, as well as maintaining her own blog (www.thebarefootvc.com).

With over twenty years of experience in media, technology, and venture capital, Jobanputra brings with her deep industry insight, global business expertise and direct investment experience from throughout the world including the United States, India, Africa, Latin America, and Europe.

About RTP Ventures RTP Ventures is a $120M venture capital fund with offices in New York City and Boston which invests in cross section of technology companies based on the deep domain expertise of its partners, from cloud computing to consumer internet, RTP provides first institutional funding as well as growth capital for its portfolio through access to ru-Net's $700M pool of capital. For more information, please visit RTP Ventures at http://www.rtp.vc.

Contact Kristen Filippini Zer0 to 5ive Kristen@0to5.com 516-356-1136

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Jalak Jobanputra Named Managing Director at RTP Ventures in New York City

Lewis-Palmer's Josh Scott, left, is among three CU signees selected to the boys all-star game. (Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post)

Future Division I players dot the boys and girls rosters of The Show, the annual high school basketball all-star game set for April 6.

The boys game features nine future D-I kids, highlighted by CU signees Josh Scott (Lewis-Palmer), Wesley Gordon (Sierra) and Xavier Talton (Sterling).

"It will be fun just because everyone has good talent," Gordon said. "I'm going to be on the floor with people who know what they're doing. It will give me a sense of what it will be like to play in college."

Future Wyoming teammates Josh Adams (Chaparral) and Austin Haldorson (Highlands Ranch) were also been selected.

Two other Division I-bound athlete have signed for other sports. Fairview's Shane O'Neill, will play soccer at Virginia; Fruita Monument's Drew Bridges will play baseball at New Mexico.

The boys game will also pit rising sophomores Dominique Collier (Denver East) and Josh Perkins (Regis Jesuit) against one another. Considered the state's top two recruits in the class of 2014, the close friends will be on opposing teams.

"We're going to have to go at it with each other," Collier said.

Perkins called being selected "one of my goals since I was a little kid."

Aurora Central's Carlton Hurst was the lone junior selected.

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Prep basketball's all-star rosters for The Show announced

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