Home / News / Foreclosure / Michigan Housing Authority Sees Success in Foreclosure Counseling
Print This Post Print This Post

Michigan Housing Authority Sees Success in Foreclosure Counseling

The ""Michigan State Housing Development Authority"":http://www.michigan.gov/mshda/ (MSHDA) has provided free foreclosure counseling assistance to more than 17,000 families through the ""National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling"":http://www.nw.org/network/foreclosure/nfmcp/ (NFMC) program over the last two years.

Created by Congress in January 2008 to address the nationwide foreclosure crisis by increasing the availability of free counseling for families at risk, the NFMC program has provided 1.12 million struggling homeowners with foreclosure prevention counseling across the nation.

[IMAGE] [COLUMN_BREAK]

""With foreclosure filings reaching record numbers in this housing-led recession, it is refreshing to know that free counseling assistance is available to help families stay in their homes,"" said MSHDA executive director, Gary Heidel. ""Stable homeowners make stable neighborhoods, and that leads to a stronger Michigan and thriving, vibrant communities.""

According to the ""Urban Institute"":http://www.urban.org/, NFMC-counseled homeowners have a nearly 70 percent greater chance of curing their foreclosure than those who don't receive counseling. Homeowners who received NFMC counseling before obtaining a loan modification were more likely to cure their loan defaults and remain current on their new mortgage payments, the Urban Institute also reported.

For clients in serious delinquency or foreclosure who were counseled in 2008 and received a loan modification after counseling, there was a 45 percent increase in the relative odds they would remain current on their payments through the end of 2009.

The Michigan State Housing Development Authority provides financial and technical assistance through public and private partnerships to create and preserve affordable housing for low- and moderate-income residents and to engage in community economic development activities to revitalize urban and rural communities.

About Author: Heather Cernoch

x

Check Also

Senate Hearing Tackles National Flood Insurance Program Reauthorization

Senate Banking Committee Chair Sharrod Brown recently held a hearing to discuss the future of the National Flood Insurance Program, featuring a panel of experts highlighting the many repercussions of an expiration in the program.