Last year, the Bush administration launched a foreclosure relief program that included an interest rate freeze for borrowers with current mortgage payments. The said rate freeze will last for five years. To assist homeowners seeking shelter under the relief program, the nonprofit organization Hope Now Alliance has opened its doors.
As soon as the relief program was launched, the number of calls made to HOPE skyrocketed. From a daily average of 1,500, calls jumped to 3,000.
One of the members of HOPE, the Consumer Credit Counseling Service for Greater Atlanta, is now looking to hire more staff in order to manage the sudden increase in the demand for foreclosure counselors. These counselors provide distressed homeowners with sound advice to help them avoid foreclosure. In 2007, the CCCS received 400,000 calls and is projecting that 2008 will increase the calls to 600,000. Because of the shortage in counselors, services become limited to callers who are delinquent and missed mortgage payments. The other callers are referred to their lenders for foreclosure advice.
If you are among these homeowners, you should realize that there are actually many ways that you can avoid having a foreclosure record on your credit history. Here are some of your available options.
- Refinancing
- Mortgage Debt Restructuring
- Short Sale
- Reinstatement
- Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure
- Foreclosure Loan
- Bankruptcy
In order for any of these options to work, you must first scrutinize your finances and carefully weigh the advantages and disadvantages. At present, the national government is looking for ways to help homeowners manage their mortgage debt to save them from Foreclosure. There are also brokers like Foreclosure Support who can provide distressed owners with assistance.
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Even though most of these government programs are voluntary and do not offer anything new in terms of solutions, the media coverage is possibly the most important factor. Too many homeowners are unaware that banks can offer them solutions to foreclosure, probably because they are being inundated with calls from the collection department. But if homeowners knew about these programs and utilized them more often, the banks might keep far more properties out of foreclosure.
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