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A mortgage modification program aimed at saving homeowners from foreclosure has failed because regulators are “afraid to rein in or impose penalties on the mortgage servicers” whose record “has been nothing short of abysmal,” the program’s watchdog told Congress Wednesday.

As a result, some House Republicans moved to scrap the 2-year-old program.

Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general for the government’s bank bailouts, bluntly labeled the mortgage program a “failure” in testimony before the House oversight committee.

“And I think that if Treasury doesn’t respond to some of these things in a quick manner,” he said, the call to dismantle the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) “is just going to become a louder and louder chorus, and understandably so.”

Three Republicans, led by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, introduced a bill Tuesday to end the program, saving up to $30 billion in unspent bailout funds.

“We think any objective look at this, it doesn’t warrant continued spending of taxpayer dollars,” Jordan said. He did not say what, if anything, he would replace the program with.

Consumer advocates said HAMP should be given a chance. “It’s far from perfect, but it’s the only thing going,” said Kathleen Day, a spokeswoman for the Center for Responsible Lending.

Blame for HAMP’s poor performance rests not with the Treasury Department, but with a mortgage-servicing industry that “can’t distinguish between the foreclosures that are inevitable and those that are avoidable,” Day said.

Indeed, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee urged Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to call executives at major mortgage servicers to testify – especially JPMorgan Chase, which has modified just 67,722 of 203,594 eligible mortgages, according to the most recent Treasury statistics.

Issa said Chase could be called to a subcommittee hearing. Chase spokesman Thomas Kelly would not say whether the company would make executives available to testify.

Barofsky’s report said the $341 billion bank bailout has largely been a success, with Wall Street banks repaying taxpayer money more quickly than anticipated.

But the mortgage program, he said, “was the program that was supposed to be of help to Main Street.”

“We’re running out of hope,” he said. With only 549,620 permanent mortgage modifications started, “there’s no way we’re going to ever get close to the 3 million to 4 million” homeowners who were supposed to be helped.

The Treasury Department defended its handling of the program Wednesday.

“I agree that the servicer performance has been abysmal and that’s something that we have been trying to fix,” said Timothy Massad, the Treasury official in charge of bank bailouts. “Let me first make it clear, this is a voluntary program. Congress didn’t give us the tools to impose fines.

Wednesday’s hearing was the first by the House Oversight Committee since the GOP took control this month. Issa said the program “was conceived by a Republican administration, approved by a Democratic Congress” and is “a fitting subject for bipartisan oversight.”

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee  Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.

Please visit:

Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help  http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com

Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com,  or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,

If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals –  http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com

Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake  or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud,  Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland,  Apopka,  Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.

Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

“It’s safe to say that HAMP isn’t meeting its goal of preventing foreclosures,” Representative Maxine Waters said at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing after the Treasury provided a preview of a report by the U.S. Treasury Department. According to the report, homeowners are dropping out of the Obama administration’s foreclosure prevention program at a faster rate than they are joining it. Bankers, housing regulators and members of Congress agreed on this much in the week’s second congressional hearing on foreclosure problems: The system needs fixing. Borrowers aided by the Home Affordable Modification Program grew to nearly 520,000 in October, up 23,750 from a month earlier, the Treasury said in its monthly report. The increase was less than five percent. A total of 36,300 borrowers have dropped out of the plan for failing to make their payments, an increase of 24 percent from a month earlier.

The Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development issue monthly progress reports on HAMP, a $50 billion program authorized by Congress in 2009. The program was targeted to reach more than 3 million homeowners by paying mortgage servicers $1,000 to rewrite loan terms and $1,000 annually as long as the borrower participates, up to three years. The program has been faulted by lawmakers and watchdogs including Neil Barofsky, special inspector general for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, for the high number of recipients who default on mortgages after getting the government aid. Banks seized more than 93,000 homes in October, according to Irvine, California-based data seller RealtyTrac Inc.

There were nearly 3.3 million foreclosure starts from September 2009 through September 2010, according to LPS Applied Analytics in Jacksonville, Florida. Mortgage servicers say they are trying to balance the needs of borrowers and the demands of investors who own their loans. “We’ve reached a crossroad between modification efforts now and the reality of foreclosure. Despite our best efforts and numerous programs, for some customers foreclosure will be unavoidable,” said Rebecca Mairone, default servicing executive for Bank of America Corp. home loans, at today’s House hearing.

Nearly everyone that I’ve spoken with has tried to a loan modification but has failed for one reason or another. If you are in this situation, don’t let the bank foreclose. The next step is to do a short sale. Call or contact me for information on what it is and how to get started.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.
Please visit:
Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com
Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,
If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals – http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com
Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud, Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Apopka, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.
Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Navigating the U.S. Treasury’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)

Walnut Creek, CA, November 19, 2009 /PRNewswire/ — PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., (NYSE: PMI) today introduced a new video to help homeowners experiencing financial hardship understand the benefits of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) and how they can take advantage of this important program. HAMP is the national loan modification program offered in the Obama Administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan which mortgage servicers are implementing broadly to bring long-term affordability to homeowners struggling to keep their homes. Navigating the Home Affordable Modification Program, one of the first videos available for homeowners, explains the benefits, eligibility requirements and types of adjustments that can be made to mortgage loans. The video also provides a realistic example of a couple’s experience before-and-after receiving a HAMP modification.

“Foreclosure prevention is critical to the U.S. housing market and the stability of communities,” said John Jelavich, head of PMI’s Homeownership Preservation Initiatives group. “Distressed homeowners who are facing the prospect of losing their home need to know that help is available for those truly interested in saving their homes. This instructional video leverages the growing popularity of internet-based video to give homeowners an overview of how HAMP works and their important role in the process.”

Navigating the Home Affordable Modification Program is divided into two parts. Part I is a basic orientation for viewers who may not have heard of HAMP, the objectives of the program, how to determine if your loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, and how to find out if you qualify. Part II discusses the information homeowners need to provide their mortgage servicer, demonstrates how affordability is achieved through a realistic example, and the steps homeowners need to take to ensure success in modifying their loan.

Additional information about alternatives to foreclosure can be found on www.HomeSafePMI.com. Sponsored by PMI Mortgage Insurance Co., the site offers a Mortgage Options Assessment Tool that enables homeowners to organize, calculate, and produce reports on their current financial situations prior to meeting their servicer or counselors to discuss solutions to foreclosure. This free tool is available to anyone.

About PMI Mortgage Insurance Co.

The PMI Group, Inc. (NYSE: PMI), headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA provides credit enhancement solutions that expand homeownership while supporting our customers and the communities they serve. Through its wholly and partially owned subsidiaries, PMI offers residential mortgage insurance and credit enhancement products. For more information: www.pmi-us.com.