ATLANTA – August 19, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — More than 34,000 Atlanta residents are potentially eligible to reduce their mortgage payments under the Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP, according to Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt and the National Association of Realtors®, who are participating in a special town hall meeting in Atlanta today for community leaders and real estate professionals.
Realtor® Linda Carol Porterfield, president of the Georgia Association of Realtors®, will attend this event on behalf of NAR. With more than 30 years of experience as a Realtor® and broker in Georgia, Porterfield knows the local market and understands how programs like HARP can help area homeowners and neighborhoods.
“Refinancing a mortgage under HARP can save eligible borrowers as much as two hundred dollars every month,” said Porterfield. “That amount of money can mean a lot to a homeowner who is underwater or has very little equity in his or her home. As the leading advocate for homeownership and housing issues, Realtors® support HARP and any effort of the federal government to help more homeowners by making mortgage payments more affordable.”
HARP, created by the FHFA and the Department of the Treasury, helps homeowners who are current on their mortgage payments but have a high loan-to-value ratio or may be underwater refinance into a more affordable mortgage at a lower interest rate. Introduced in 2009 as part of the Making Home Affordable program, HARP is one of the only refinance programs that allow borrowers with little or no equity to take advantage of low interest rates and other refinancing benefits.
Realtors® are trusted advisors for consumers on housing questions and are in a key position to share information about HARP and other foreclosure avoidance options with homeowners in the Atlanta area, and elsewhere.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries
Media Contact: Jenny Werwa / 202-383-1193
