Mortgage Firms Pledge to Help

Cleveland Plain Dealer (OH) (04/08/08); Rollenhagen, Mark
Nine mortgage servicing companies have agreed to make a good-faith effort to contact Ohio homeowners who are having trouble making payments as soon as possible and try to modify the terms of their loans, in an effort to keep borrowers in the state from becoming victims of foreclosure. The non-binding agreement with Ohio comes a year after Gov. Ted Strickland (D) warned that he would consider new legislation or tougher regulation if mortgage lenders refused to sign on to a formal agreement. Bill Cosgrove, president of the Ohio Mortgage Bankers Association, praised the state for continuing the discussion with mortgage lenders. Carrington Mortgage Services, Citi, GMAC ResCap/Homecomings Financial, HSBC Finance, Litton Loan Servicing, Ocwen Financial, Option One Mortgage, Saxon Mortgage Services and Select Portfolio Servicing entered into the agreement with Ohio. The national companies service mortgages for about 55 percent of subprime borrowers in the state.