Obama's Foreclosure Plan » HAMP

Foreclosures among blacks still on the rise, despite stimulus

Mark — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 02:32:42 +0000

Predatory lending entities, not black Americans worst hit by the housing crisis, have pocketed the lions share of stimulus money doled out so far.

That according to US REO and cited by an NAACP rep in a recent LA Times editorial. “The money should have gone to direct payments to homeowners, just like they did with the banks.”

Hard to argue with that logic (although US senators and even some authorized to dole out HAMP funds see it differently).

The nonprofit ProPublica has confirmed that only a tiny amount of the HAMP qualified mortgages have been given permanent status – and black Americans are underrepresented.

Obama administration tweaks program to address shortcomings

Mark — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 02:34:41 +0000

Cases where lenders continues with foreclosure proceedings despite homeowners remaining under evaluation will be banned under new rules being reviewed by the Obama administration.

The changes reflect the continuing pressure that the administration is feeling to keep the HAMP program on track in the face of growing complaints that the bureaucracy and back-stabbing at the heart of the program are limiting its effectiveness.

Also under the revised rules, homeowners will have 30 days to appeal a rejection and during that time, lenders cannot conduct a foreclosure sale.

Obama Foreclosure Program Shows Gains, But Cracks Appear As Well

Mark — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:40:17 +0000

On the surface, the latest Treasury department figures are encouraging. 1 in 5 homeowners have received what the department deems “long-lasting relief” as a result of the President’s foreclosure-prevention initiative.

What’s more, that figure has been on the rise in recent months.

But dig deeper, and there are some worrying trends. The number of new homeowners securing trial modifications is near the lowest levels since the program began. And while the share of homeowners who have converted into permanent modifications has been on the rise, it isn’t nearly enough to keep up with the number of newly eligible borrowers.

Translation? The much ballyhooed Home Affordable Modification Program has been and continues to be successful on the margins, but it isn’t going to stop the large number of foreclosures that will come into the market this year.

Something is better than nothing, of course, but so far it isn’t as much as officials and economists has hoped.

We should have a better idea when paperwork is submitted and tallied for permanent modifications by the end of February and into March.