Mortgage Lenders Pledge More Help for Homeowners

Washington Post (06/17/08) P. D1; Merle, Renae
The HOPE NOW Alliance on June 17 will announce voluntary guidelines that big mortgage lenders have agreed to follow in an attempt to curb the number of foreclosures and accelerate the process of helping distressed borrowers. The lenders have pledged to acknowledge a borrower's request for assistance within five business days, approve or deny a request within 45 days of receiving the application and inform the borrower about the status of the application after 30 days. They also will strive to have enough staff to handle calls from homeowners and housing counselors and consider suspending the foreclosure process once a homeowner initiates contact.