Foreclosure Counseling - NFMC Report

Last week, NeighborWorks America released its 6th report to Congress on the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling program (NFMC).  The full report is available here.


Once again, the most recent report shows that while foreclosures continue to impact the nation's housing market, foreclosure intervention/prevention counseling WORKS.


Here are just a few of the highlights from the report:

• Homeowners who receive foreclosure prevention counseling are 70% more likely to cure their foreclosure than similar homeowners that don't receive counseling.
  
• Counseling clients that received loan modifications were able to reduce their monthly loan payments an additional $260 MORE than homeowners that don't work with a counselor.  The cumulative savings for struggling homeowners?  More than $560 Billion (with a "B") dollars PER YEAR.

One of the interesting shifts highlighted in the report is the fact that, for the first time, a majority of the clients nationwide that sought foreclosure counseling (53%) hold fixed-rate mortgages with interest rates below 8%.  In October of 2008... only 30% of homeowners were in the same situation.  The foreclosure crisis in the U.S. is definitively no longer just a sub-prime issue.  Over 60% of homeowners cite unemployment or underemployment as the primary reason they are struggling with their mortgage payment.

All of this information is very similar to the information we've seen in Minnesota.  The Center's 2010 report on the foreclosure prevention counseling is available here.

Given that foreclosures in Minnesota have once again begun to tick upwards... it is vitally important that homeowners seek the help of a certified non-profit Housing Counseling agency when they're struggling with their mortgage.  Do you know someone that's struggling to make their mortgage payment?  Let them know about free counseling in Minnesota by having them visit: www.hocmn.org for more information.