If you’re one of the seven to nine million homeowners whose monthly mortgage payments are taking their toll, the Obama administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, could help you refinance that loan into more affordable payments. This plan will be crucial to many black families who were disproportionately targeted by subprime loans.
“We’ve got to make sure that moving forward the right kind of products are available so that homeownership can truly be the American dream,†explains Shaun Donovan, secretary of Housing and Urban Development, in a conference call directed at African American media today.
Increased access to available credit through loan refinancing and modification is one of the expectations that HASP can provide for homeowners. First it will target four to five million homeowners who saw their property values fall. Eligible candidates must be current on their mortgages and have loans with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to refinance loans at lower interest rate.
Second, it will provide $75 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program in funding for three to four million homeowners that are most at risk to foreclosure. Finally, the plan, which is coordinated by the U.S. Treasury in conjunction with HUD, will commit up to $200 billion to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to keep credit flowing and strengthen mortgage affordability in the near future.
Donovan expressed concern about foreclosure scams and encouraged at risk homeowners to seek free access to the HASP by visiting www.hud.gov and HUD-certified counseling agencies in their communities or by calling the HOPE NOW hotline at 888-995-HOPE.