The Homeownership Preservation Foundation, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit organization dedicated to homeownership preservation and foreclosure prevention, has launched a toll-free, confidential hotline to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. When homeowners call 1-888-995-HOPE (4673), they are instantly connected to experts who work for counseling agencies certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counselors are specially trained to help homeowners resolve financial concerns, discuss available options based on their financial circumstances, and establish a dialogue between the homeowner and the homeowner's mortgage company.
Based on the foundation's research, slighly more than 50 percent of homeowners are uncomfortable contacting their mortgage company for help. The hotline was created to provide an alternative resource for homeowners and to encourage them to seek assistance before losing their home.
Foreclosures are costly. "Besides the obvious loss to the homeowner, the values of homes near foreclosed properties drop. A typical city may lose up to $33,000 per foreclosed home, and an average foreclosure may cost a mortgage company $50,000 or more per home", said Walt Fricke, president and executive director of the Homeownership Preservation Foundation, in a news release.
Over the last five years, nearly 2.9 million U.S. households have foreclosed, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. "With the rising number of forecosures that have occurred over the past five years, providing a hotline for homeowners is long overdue." Fricke said. "We believe we can make a difference on behalf of the mortgage industry."
