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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Thursday both announced their annual holiday moratorium on evictions of foreclosed occupied single-family homes and 2 to 4 unit properties that are owned or guaranteed by one of the GSEs.
Evictions will be suspended for the period between December 18, 2015, and January 3, 2016. During that period, local companies handling evictions for the GSEs may continue administrative proceedings or filing documentation for the evictions, but families will not be evicted during that time.
“Today’s announcement is intended to provide a greater measure of certainty to families during the upcoming holiday season,” said Chris Bowden, SVP of REO at Freddie Mac. “We also strongly urge homeowners who are facing financial challenges and possible foreclosures to explore Freddie Mac's workout options with their mortgage servicers. They do help and have prevented more than 1.1 million foreclosures since 2009.”
The suspension applies only to evictions on REO properties owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but will not affect other pre- and post-foreclosure activities, according to the announcements.
“As we have done in past years, we are suspending evictions during the holidays,” said Joy Cianci, SVP of Credit Portfolio Management for Fannie Mae. “We also continue to remind homeowners who may be struggling with their mortgages to reach out for help. Options are available to avoid foreclosure, and we want to help pursue those options whenever possible.”
The GSEs have made helping families avoid foreclosure a top priority since the housing crisis hit the nation seven years ago. Freddie Mac offers information on ways struggling borrowers can find mortgage relief on its My Home by Freddie Mac website. Fannie Mae offers assistance in its Know Your Options site.
