HOPE NOW [1], an industry-created alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, counselors, and other mortgage market participants, has announced [2] that it will be hosting several nationwide outreach events to offer loss mitigation options to at-risk homeowners.
So far in 2015, members of the HOPE NOW alliance have participated in two such events in Oakland and San Bernardino, both in California. At these events, homeowners at risk of foreclosure are typically reviewed for various foreclosure prevention options such as permanent loan modifications, repayment plans, or other retention solutions. When a home retention solution is not possible, other options are considered to avoid foreclosure such as a short sale or a deed-in-lieu.
According to HOPE NOW Executive Director Eric Selk, both California events hosted about 500 attendees each. Selk said that about 50 percent of attendees were delinquent on their mortgages and about 25 percent were unemployed. About 77 percent of attendees at the Oakland event were reviewed for a permanent home retention solution, compared to about 60 percent in San Bernardino.
Selk said HOPE NOW will be hosing similar events in Chicago, St. Louis, Ft. Lauderdale, Hartford, Memphis, and Los Angeles later this year.
"Additionally, we will host events requested by Congressional representatives and local leaders in other markets still recovering from the housing crisis," Selk said. "In addition to our loss mitigation events, our members are working on new initiatives with us, such as community repair and loan originations, designed to further stabilize the housing market. We expect to roll out more detailed plans for these projects in the near future."
HOPE NOW announced [3] that from its creation in 2007 until the end of 2014, the mortgage industry has completed more than 23 million non-foreclosure solutions for homeowners, including 7.3 million permanent loan modifications. In January 2015, lenders and servicers offered homeowners another 158,000 non-foreclosure solutions, according to HOPE NOW.