LAKEWOOD, Colo. -- Imagine modifying your home loan only to have your house taken from you three months later.

That's the reality for one Arvada family.

After the modification, Bank of America sent them a letter saying the bank had bought the home back and they were being evicted.

So where was the breakdown?

"A lot of homeowners are under the impression that if they have a trial modification they are eligible for a permanent modification, but that's not always the case," said Stephanie Riggi, the manager for the Colorado Foreclosure Hotline. "They may not have been qualified or pre-qualified for this type of program."

Riggi said modifications, under President Obama's "Making Home Affordable Program", work for some but not for all.

For example, if you've already missed some house payments, a trial modification may not stop the foreclosure process.

The Miller family of Arvada found that out the hard way. Their story is not unlike thousands of other foreclosure stories.

"We came into some financial problems and had not made a couple of payments," said Jamie Miller.

Miller said his family faced some catastrophic events over the past few years. Their 16-year-old son was killed by a drunk driver, then Jamie fell ill and was out of work for about a year.

After several missed payments, Miller’s lender offered a solution -- a loan modification to lower payments. He immediately took the offer and started paying again.

"We were told by Bank of America they could do a modification on our house, try to bring down the payments to make it where it was more affordable for us," said Miller.

But after three months, Bank of America sent him a letter saying his home was not only in foreclosure, but the bank had bought it back.

"It was a huge shock. We put it out there in someone else's hands, believing that the right thing was going to be done. Not knowing or having information, that was the most frustrating part," said Miller.

Riggi said it's all too common. Because of the previous missed payments, the foreclosure clock was already ticking for the Millers, she said.

"For some, a modification is the best alternative. For others, it may not be," said Riggi, who believes the guidelines will soon change. "The government is starting to see the backlash. I even heard they are looking at changing some of the guidelines as early as this week."

"We believed in it and then, in the middle of it, our house was sold," Miller said.

The Millers will likely be evicted by the end of the week.

7NEWS called Bank of America about this case, but they did not return our phone calls.

Riggi said a lot of modifications don't require documentation up front, and it’s up to the homeowners to follow up and find out what paperwork is needed.

If you have questions, call the Colorado Foreclosure Hotline at 1-877-601-HOPE (4673).