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Housing Alliance to Continue Borrower Outreach Events in Midwest

foreclosure-helpHOPE NOW, an industry-created alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, counselors, and other mortgage market participants, has announced two more dates for borrower outreach events across the country later in 2015.

The borrower outreach events are intended to help homeowners at risk of default review their loss mitigation options face-to-face with local nonprofits and housing counselors and ultimately avoid foreclosure. Aside from the event scheduled for Chicago on May 27, HOPE NOW has announced borrower outreach events for St. Louis (June 13) and Cleveland (July 11) as part of an effort to focus on the Midwest. HOPE NOW said it plans to host events later in the year in Ft. Lauderdale, Hartford, Memphis, and Los Angeles.

“The industry has many tools at its disposal in offering customers the best possible outcome,” HOPE NOW executive director Eric Selk said. “HOPE NOW’s data has shown a consistent trend in the relationship between options offered and foreclosure sales. The good news in this trend is that these efforts point to a correcting market across the board. HOPE NOW’s members have made a special effort to engage borrowers in communities that still lag behind in their housing and economic recovery.”

HOPE NOW has hosted outreach events this year in Oakland ans San Bernardino, California, and had considerable support from local leaders and non-profits, Selk said. Both California events hosted about 500 attendees each, with about 50 percent of attendees delinquent on their mortgages and about 25 percent unemployed. About 77 percent of attendees at the Oakland event were reviewed for a permanent home retention solution, compared to about 60 percent in San Bernardino, Selk said. If a home retention solution such as a permanent loan modification cannot be worked out, borrowers are encouraged to consider other non-foreclosure options such as short sales or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure.

In addition to the outreach events for at-risk borrowrs, HOPE NOW's member organizations will pilot an event focused on new borrower education and homebuying in Anaheim, California, on May 30.

“It is hoped that these types of outreach activities, combined with our signature loss mitigation events, will allow our members to better address housing issues at a regional level,” Selk said.

HOPE NOW announced that from its creation in 2007 until the end of Q1 2015, the mortgage industry has completed more than 23.7 million non-foreclosure solutions for homeowners, including 7.5 million permanent loan modifications. In the first quarter of 2015, lenders and servicers offered homeowners another 444,000 non-foreclosure solutions, according to HOPE NOW.

About Author: Brian Honea

Brian Honea's writing and editing career spans nearly two decades across many forms of media. He served as sports editor for two suburban newspaper chains in the DFW area and has freelanced for such publications as the Yahoo! Contributor Network, Dallas Home Improvement magazine, and the Dallas Morning News. He has written four non-fiction sports books, the latest of which, The Life of Coach Chuck Curtis, was published by the TCU Press in December 2014. A lifelong Texan, Brian received his master's degree from Amberton University in Garland.
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