New Regulations for Loan Modification and Refinance

Posted under Industry News on March 6, 2009

The Obama administration’s $75 billion Making Home Affordable program is being touted by administration officials by possibly helping anywhere from three million to four million families avoid foreclosure.

The plan’s unveiling comes only weeks after the administration announced its Homeowner Affordability and Stability plan that would offer up to $200 billion to support low mortgage rates by “strengthening confidence” in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-controlled mortgage finance companies—monies that were made available through the Housing and Economic Recovery Act.

According to the Treasury, the program will:

  • Provide access to low-cost refinancing for responsible homeowners suffering from falling home prices;
  • Prevent foreclosure by way of working with the GSEs, FHA, the FDIC and other federal agencies, as part of a “comprehensive multi-part strategy to prevent millions of foreclosures and help families stay in their homes”;

and to:

  • Support low mortgage rates by strengthening confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac using the previously authorized funding.
  • Click here to download a pdf of Treasury’s Housing Fact Sheet
  • Click here for a summary of guidelines;
  • Click here for housing counselor Q&A;
  • Click here for the full Home Affordable Modification Program guidelines.