Loan Modifications Reach 1.77 Homeowners, Study Shows

A private study showed that an estimated 1.77 million homeowners have avoided foreclosure through loan modifications since January 2009, representing a 20% improvement in foreclosure prevention since government efforts began two years ago.

The study was conducted by HOPE NOW, an alliance of private mortgage servicers, insurers, investors and counselors, and tracked foreclosure and loan workout data from July 2007 through July 2009.

According to the report, foreclosure starts went up by about 30,000 from June to July, but completed sales went down by over 3,000. The number of homeowners in serious delinquency—those who are 60 days or more overdue—also increased by about 5.9%.

July was one of the strongest months for the housing sector, as over 250,000 borrowers were helped out of foreclosure and foreclosure sales saw a significant drop. HOPE NOW executive director Faith Schwartz believes this proves that the housing industry is dedicated to helping people stay in their homes.

Mortgage servicers are continuing their foreclosure intervention efforts and urging at-risk homeowners to get help from trusted sources, Schwartz added. HOPE NOW has a help hotline, 888-995-HOPE, for troubled borrowers where they can get loan modification advice and contact their servicers directly.

In a separate report, the U.S. Treasury revealed that 230,000 trial modifications were initiated in July, which is expected to boost the numbers further. Both government officials and industry players remain hopeful that the Obama administration will reach its goal of granting 500,000 loan modifications by November this year.

HOPE NOW is currently implementing homeowner assistance programs in alliance with various non-profit organizations. It also works with a number of government and government-run offices, including the Treasury, the Federal Reserve, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac. The group has so far helped over 40,000 homeowners and continues to hold outreach events nationwide.