NFCC RECEIVES MAXIMUM SHARE OF GRANT TO ASSIST HOMEOWNERS
Washington, DC – June 24, 2011 – (RealEstateRama) — The National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a maximum grant of $5,821,833.60 under the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program (EHLP). This award represents approximately 25 percent of the total $22,990,954 allocated under EHLP.
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act provided $1 billion to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to implement EHLP, with NeighborWorks America providing key EHLP program administration functions on behalf of HUD.
“The NFCC commends Congress for taking the steps necessary to assist homeowners during these extremely difficult economic times,” said Gail Cunningham, spokesperson for the NFCC. “The participating NFCC Member Agencies look forward to working with consumers through this new program, helping them avoid foreclosure and restore financial stability to their lives.”
Eligibility requires, among other things, homeowners to have experienced a drop in income of at least 15 percent, directly resulting from involuntary unemployment or underemployment due to adverse economic conditions and/or a medical emergency. Additionally, the applicant must be at least three months delinquent on mortgage payments, as signified by notification by his or her first-lien lender/servicer, and reside in the single-family property as their principal residence.
Approved homeowners are eligible to receive one-time EHLP assistance to pay certain arrearages to bring them current, as well as ongoing monthly assistance to help them to make their monthly first lien mortgage payments (including payments of principal, interest, taxes, and insurances). Assistance is limited to a maximum duration of 24 months, or up to a maximum loan amount of $50,000 in mortgage payment assistance, whichever occurs first.
Homeowners must contact a participating housing counseling agency to complete the pre-application process by July 22, 2011. There are 22 NFCC Member Agencies participating in the NFCC’s EHLP Intermediary that will deliver outreach, screening, application assistance, and counseling services to approximately 5,520 households in 24 states and Puerto Rico.
To find the closest participating NFCC Member Agency, and for more details on the program, consumers can visit www.nw.org/ehlp.
The National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), founded in 1951, is the nation’s largest and longest serving national nonprofit credit counseling organization. The NFCC’s mission is to promote the national agenda for financially responsible behavior, and build capacity for its members to deliver the highest-quality financial education and counseling services. NFCC Members annually help over three million consumers through close to 800 community-based offices nationwide. For free and affordable confidential advice through a reputable NFCC Member, call (800) 388-2227, (en Español (800) 682-9832) or visit www.nfcc.org. Visit us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NFCCDebtAdvice, on Twitter: twitter.com/NFCCDebtAdvice, on YouTube: www.YouTube.com/NFCC09 and our blog: http://financialeducation.nfcc.org/.
