Banks Provide $50.6B in Relief, Settlement Obligations Nearly Met

The five banks that took part in the ""national mortgage settlement"":http://dsnews.comarticles/robo-signing-settlement-finalized-2012-02-09 are getting close to completing their consumer relief obligations a year after the landmark deal was reached.

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So far, the five banks--Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and Ally Financial--have provided $50.63 billion in consumer relief to over 621,700 borrowers, according to an update from the settlement monitor ""Joseph A. Smith, Jr."":https://www.mortgageoversight.com/about-the-office-of-mortgage-settlement-oversight/ The provided relief comes out to about $81,437 per borrower.

Last February, federal officials and 49 state attorneys general reached a landmark $25 billion settlement with the five banks. Under the settlement, the banks agreed to provide $20 billion in mortgage relief to borrowers.

Out of the banks, the monitor stated ResCap, Ally's bankrupt mortgage subsidiary, has been credited with meeting all consumer relief obligations under the settlement.

Bank of America stated it believes it has actually exceeded consumer relief requirements and plans to continue reaching out to customers who are eligible for relief.

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So far, BofA reported about 320,000 customers have received assistance, leading to $29.2 billion in relief for all settlement programs.

Chase reported it has helped 126,000 customers and met all of its consumer relief requirements after providing $11 billion in mortgage relief.

Wells Fargo reported that it has fulfilled an estimated 90 percent of its relief requirements under the settlement and has assisted nearly 93,000 customers.

However, with the exception of ResCap, reports from the banks are still subject to review.

""The four banks that have not yet been credited have requested that I determine their consumer relief progress through the end of 2012,"" said Smith. ""I will release my review of their work in the coming weeks to the Court and the public. At that time, I look forward to engaging in a public conversation about their progress.""

Of the 621,712 borrowers who received relief thus far, 387,420 borrowers were provided with some form of assistance that allowed them to stay in their home. First lien modifications were provided for 92,599 borrowers during the one-year period, leading to a total of $10.13 billion in principal forgiveness, which averages to about $109,418 in relief per borrower, according to a fact sheet from the monitor. Adding to this are 14,697 borrowers who are in a trial period for a modification.

Servicers also provided refinancing for 73,397 home loans and reduced the interest rate by about 2.25 percent. Through refinancing, borrowers saved an average of $425 in interest payments each month.

Home forfeiture options were provided to over 175,000 borrowers through short sales or deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, with the remaining debt from principal waived, leading to an average of $114,600 in relief per borrower. The total amount for this type of relief totaled $20.07 billion.