Tag Archives: Foreclosure Prevention

HOPE NOW announced a major milestone Tuesday -- the completion of 5 million loan modifications since the group began tracking such loss mitigation efforts in 2007. More than 80 percent of these modifications were completed through servicers' own proprietary programs, with the rest coming from the government's Home Affordable Modification Program. Officials called the 5 million mark a halfway point, adding that much more work needs to be done to help distressed homeowners.

An annual audit of the Federal Housing Administration's (FHA) books has concluded there is a 50-50 chance the government mortgage insurer will need a bailout from taxpayers within the next 12 months. The agency's cash reserves have been cut almost in half over the past year and its capital reserve ratio has plunged to 0.24 percent. The minimum legal limit mandated by Congress is 2 percent. News of the agency's deteriorating bottom line comes just as lawmakers are advancing a bill that would likely increase FHA's market share.

NeighborWorks America announced Tuesday that Sarah McGraw Greenberg has been appointed director of its development division. Greenberg is NeighborWorks' front-line official for fundraising to support the nonprofit organization's work to prevent foreclosure and foster long-term homeownership. As director, Greenberg provides strategic leadership to the corporation's partnership and resource development efforts.

California is relaxing some of its eligibility restrictions and increasing the amount of assistance it provides struggling homeowners through its mortgage assistance program. Keep Your Home California is a $2 billion initiative funded by the federal government through the California Housing Finance Agency. Changes to the various sub-programs include an extension of the time period during which unemployed homeowners receive assistance and expanding eligibility to those who own more than one property.

More than 445 nonprofit housing counseling agencies nationwide have one simple message for Congress: Restore housing counseling funds. Mandated federal budget cuts earlier this year stripped away $88 million in HUD funding that had been designated to support mortgage and foreclosure counseling programs. Those working on the front lines of the housing crisis everyday say counseling is critical to assisting distressed homeowners, and they're calling on lawmakers to restore funding at the level of $60 million.

As Americans consider the best candidates for the 2012 presidential and congressional elections, housing is at the forefront of the debate for many. About 70 percent of Americans say a candidate's position on housing could sway their vote, according to a survey released by Move, Inc. However, Americans differ in their views of what the housing market needs most. The survey found 30.9 percent of Americans believe the next president's priority for his or her first 100 days in office should be helping homeowners avoid foreclosures.

The nation's largest mortgage company says it lost $5.1 billion during the third quarter of this year. That combined with a $2.5 billion dividend payment to Treasury for past bailout money left Fannie Mae with a $7.8 billion hole to fill. Upon receipt of those funds, Fannie Mae's total debt obligation to U.S. taxpayers will be $112.6 billion. The GSE held 122,616 single-family REO properties as of the end of September, and completed 87,533 foreclosure prevention actions during the quarter.

CredAbility has announced the launch of its 2012 ""Reconstruye tu Futuro"" campaign, which will leverage grassroots efforts, social media networks, and traditional media communication to reach those in the Hispanic community who are at risk of foreclosure. With more than 50 million Hispanics in the United States and a downturn economy, CredAbility says Latino individuals and families have been more deeply impacted than other minority populations. By leveraging key financial tools, CredAbility aims to help Latino individuals, families, and communities recapture their American Dream.

Treasury has released a new progress report on its Making Home Affordable initiative, covering all the ""H"" acronyms. Since the program started in April 2009, 857,000 homeowners have received permanent loan restructurings under HAMP, and 894,000 have refinanced their mortgages through HARP. HAFA transactions tally just under 19,000. Officials say they continue to see a fall in mortgage defaults due in part to foreclosure prevention programs reaching more borrowers upstream in the process, but there's ""much more work to do.""

The nation's second largest mortgage company is asking the U.S. Treasury for another $6 billion in capital support after posting its largest quarterly loss in over a year. Freddie Mac says it recorded a net loss of $4.4 billion for the quarter ended September 30, 2011, after shouldering a $4.8 billion loss on derivatives and a $3.6 billion provision for credit losses related to high levels of mortgage refinancing and lower mortgage insurance recoveries. The GSE's REO operations expense skyrocketed to $221 million in the third quarter, compared to $27 million for the second quarter.