If you are having difficulty making your mortgage payments, one of the most important things you can do is be proactive.  Learn about the foreclosure process for residents in your state and what may lead up to it and find out more about the resources on a local, state and national level available to assist you in working with your lender and your finances.

 

The Obama Administration’s Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program(HAFA), effective April 5, will help homeowners who are unable to retain their home under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), by providing incentives for short sales and deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure rather than foreclosure. HAFA offers financial incentives for the borrowers and loan servicers to choose these options over foreclosure proceedings and attempts to streamline the short sale process by providing a standard process, timeframes and standard documentation.  Visit the website at www.MakingHomeAffordable.gov.

 

The National Association of REALTORS® has a page on their website where you can learn what you can do to protect your home at www.realtor.org/home_buyers_and_sellers/protect_your_home

 

NAR also has a consumer website www.HouseLogic.comwhere you can find information on everything you need to protect, maintain, and enhance the value of your home.

 

Short Sale Information by NAR at www.REALTOR.org/ShortSales

 

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation also has a Foreclosure Prevention Toolkit with information that is available at http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/loans/prevention/toolkit.html

 

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has information on avoiding foreclosure at http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/topics/avoiding_foreclosure

 

HUD also has a list of approved housing Counseling Agencies at http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/fc/index.cfm?webListAction=search&searchstate=SD&filterSvc=dfc

 

Fannie Mae is committed to supporting and aiding in the efforts to stabilize the housing market. If you are one of the many homeowners facing tough choices in today’s economy, we understand. We know that looking for assistance with your mortgage and deciding where to go for help can be confusing and frustrating. And we’re here to help. Visit Fannie Mae's webpage with information that may help http://www.fanniemae.com/kb/index?page=home&c=homeowners_moreoptions 

 

To fulfill this mission, Freddie Mac conducts business in the U.S. secondary mortgage market – meaning we do not originate loans – and works with a national network of mortgage lending customers. We have three business lines: a Single Family Credit Guarantee business for home loans; a Multifamily business for apartment financing; and an investment portfolio.  They have a page on their website on Avoiding Foreclosure at http://www.freddiemac.com/avoidforeclosure/