'Getting Struck By Lightning'

Enlarge Jeff Nielsen

The Nielsens have kept both their home and sense of humor.

Jeff Nielsen

The Nielsens have kept both their home and sense of humor.

This little drawing came in from Jeff and Chiara Nielsen, who are feeling pretty good these days in their recently refinanced Salt Lake city home.

The first time we heard from Jeff, he was not making art. He was banging his head against the wall trying to get through to his mortgage servicer. On paper, Jeff was the perfect candidate for President Obama's plan to stem home foreclosures. He kept trying to apply, but despite a 100-page application and at least 100 calls to his servicer, he says he could not get any response..

We put Jeff on the podcast. Two days after the podcast ran, he was suddenly approved.

Julia Gordon, with the Center for Responsible Lending, explains this to us on All Things Considered today.

She says that in general, loan servicers are overwhelmed and it's hard to get through the system. But she says there is always the "getting struck by lightning option." That would be to get national media interested in you. Getting the attention of a congressperson works, too. Otherwise, you're likely to wait in a long, long line.