Great news for homeowners struggling with mortgage costs. The US federal government has pushed the deadline for emergency assistance requests to September 15. This extend offer is available for homeowners across 27 states.
Previously, the Department of Housing and Urban Development Emergency Homeowners Loan Program had set its deadline on July 27. This initiative, introduced as part of Durbin-Dodd amendment, was conceived to provide bridge loans facilitating homeowners in dealing with mortgage costs. To be eligible for this aid, applicants must be dealing with issues like job loss, medical emergencies, severe credit card debt and have a delay of a minimum of three months in their mortgage payments.
Eligible homeowners can obtain a financial assistance capped at $50,000 for a two-year period. The notable feature of this loan is its free-interest provision, and the fact that it needn’t be repaid if the homeowner maintains timely mortgage payments in next five years.
The original July deadline was determined to ensure that the funds will become available post September 30th. The deadline has been extended twice now, with the aim of providing aid to a larger number of people. This $1 billion initiative is forecasted to assist 20,000 – 30,000 distressed homeowners. According to a Housing Department’s spokesman, Brian Sullivan, they received roughly 84,000 initial applications, with about 40,000 passing the first eligibility screening round.
To qualify for the second round approval, homeowners need to present a detailed account of their financial condition and needs, verified via bank statements and/or employment termination letters.
This loan program is particularly beneficial for homeowners living in states not eligible for the $7.6 billion fund, designated for 18 states most affected by housing crisis. Homeowners in Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming can avail this facility.
Several other states, including Delaware, Idaho, Maryland, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, have also introduced programs to support homeowners behind on their mortgage payments. These five states received a total of 11,000 applications and by the end of August, approved 3,000 of them.
