Articles Tagged With: FHA Disaster Relief

October 26, 2020

Warning Signs Of Foreclosure Relief Scams

Foreclosure scams are very much on the rise in an era where more borrowers than ever need some form of foreclosure prevention, mortgage relief, or other options to save their homes during times of financial uncertainty. Fortunately, many of these scams have some tell-tale warning signs you can use to avoid getting conned. The federal government warns consumers to watch out for the indicators that a scammer is at work instead of a legitimate offer of help. The Federal Trade Commission warns home owners to stay vigilant, especially when the following signs are present from any business which: There are other warnings–have you been approached by someone asking you for an upfront fee before any services are rendered? Unless the person asking is a legitimate lawyer you have vetted yourself, | more...

September 18, 2020

FHA And HUD Announce Mortgage Loan Disaster Relief For Borrowers In Oregon

By Joe Wallace

The FHA and HUD have announced disaster relief for home owners with FHA mortgages in the recently-declared federal disaster areas there. Wildfires have destroyed massive amounts of property in the state of Oregon and other areas in the western part of the United States; affected states have been reviewed for federal disaster declarations as a result. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced disaster relief for FHA borrowers for the following Oregon counties. The federal disaster declaration means HUD can offer foreclosure relief to FHA borrowers. That relief starts with foreclosure relief in the form of a 90-day moratorium on foreclosure actions on affected borrowers, and there is also help with FHA loans to repair or replace homes damaged by the fires. Borrowers who have homes that | more...

September 3, 2020

HUD Announces Disaster Relief In The Wake Of Hurricane Laura

By Joe Wallace

On August 28, 2020, there was a federal major disaster declaration announced for the state of Louisiana; those living in the affected areas are eligible for federal disaster relief and other measures as announced (see below). The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development now offers federal disaster assistance there “to provide support to homeowners and low-income renters displaced from their homes in areas affected by Hurricane Laura.” The major disaster declaration is for the following parishes in Louisiana; Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, and Jefferson Davis. The result of having these areas declared as federal disaster areas allows FHA foreclosure relief and other assistance to impacted families living in these counties to include immediate foreclosure relief in the form of a 90-day moratorium on foreclosing upon any FHA mortgage. For | more...

August 31, 2020

HUD Extends COVID-19 Foreclosure Moratorium For A Third Time

By Bruce Reichstein

The FHA and HUD have announced a third extension of the coronavirus foreclosure and eviction moratorium announced earlier this year to help homeowners affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. This extension is extended until the end of 2020 and is intended to help those with FHA mortgages “focus on financial recovery”. The original measures were passed as part of the Coronavirus Relief and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. According to a press release issued by the FHA and HUD, “This extension provides an additional four months of housing security to homeowners, as they will not fear losing their homes as they work to recover financially from the adverse impacts of the pandemic. “ HUD officials went on the record about this extension stating that, “…homeownership | more...

August 26, 2020

FHA Home Loan Advice For Disaster Victims

By Bruce Reichstein

At the time of this writing, multiple natural disasters are affecting homeowners from California to the Gulf Coast. This, in addition to COVID-19 concerns makes for a lot of hardship for those who have had to evacuate, and for those who have experienced damaged homes and lost property. The FHA and HUD have specific disaster-relief policies on the books that are intended to help those affected by natural disasters recover from them. FHA loan rules include limited foreclosure moratorium procedures for borrowers, and there is help in the form of FHA rehabilitation loans specifically for disaster victims. However, this relief is provided to those who reside in areas that have been declared as federal disaster areas. The President must make such a declaration (such as the one made in California | more...

April 13, 2020

Are You In Trouble On Your FHA Mortgage Loan?

By Joe Wallace

Are you having trouble making your FHA home loan payments? Is the coronavirus emergency made it financially difficult to stay current on your mortgage loan? There have been a variety of relief measures proposed and announced, but many of them are more general types of assistance. The FHA and HUD published an announcement discussing COVID-19 related mortgage relief for FHA borrowers affected by the coronavirus outbreak. This relief is specifically for those with mortgage loans guaranteed by the FHA including mortgages, reverse mortgages, etc. These measures were a welcome development for many FHA mortgage borrowers, but it is crucial for home owners to understand that until you contact your loan servicer, you cannot assume it’s safe to delay payments. You MUST make arrangements with your lender to claim the mortgage | more...

April 2, 2020

HUD Announces New Mortgage Relief Options For FHA Borrowers Affected By COVID-19

By Joe Wallace

The coronavirus emergency has created difficult financial times for most Americans. Many wonder where they will find the money to meet their financial obligations including mortgage payments. Those who have FHA home loans should contact their loan servicers right away due to the latest round of coronavirus relief measures aimed at helping FHA borrowers save their homes from loan default and eventual foreclosure. The Department of Housing and Urban Development has provided a new coronavirus mortgage relief package for FHA borrowers above and beyond the original 60-day foreclosure moratorium issued previously. If you have an FHA mortgage, refinance loan, or One-Time Close Construction mortgage and are experiencing financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, you may qualify for certain relief measures that took effect April 1, 2020. Borrowers | more...

October 22, 2019

FHA Disaster Relief Changes

By Bruce Reichstein

In August of 2019, the FHA and HUD issued press releases and Mortgagee Letters describing changes to the FHA loss mitigation guidelines for those recovering from natural disasters in federally-declared natural disaster areas. The FHA states that the new rules affect homeowners who live or work in a “Presidentially-Declared Major Disaster Areas (PDMDAs) of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria or certain California Wildfires, Flooding, Mudflows, and Debris Flows” according to the HUD official site. Certain temporary measures the FHA and HUD passed in recent times to help improve disaster recovery in these areas are now made permanent. There are some features that have been added that streamline the application process for FHA loan relief, forbearance, and other measures. According to the HUD official site, lenders can use a recent bank | more...

September 11, 2019

FHA Mortgages In Special Flood Hazard Areas

By Bruce Reichstein

The FHA lender’s handbook, HUD 4000.1, has instructions for the lender to make sure properties to be purchased with an FHA mortgage aren’t located in certain zones. The lender is also tasked with insuring that if the home is located within certain flood hazard areas that the appropriate hazard insurance is obtained as a condition of loan approval. One such zone is the Special Flood Hazard Area or SFHA. HUD 4000.1 instructs the lender to insure that a home is located in an SFHA as declared by FEMA. “The Mortgagee must obtain flood zone determination services, independent of any assessment made by the Appraiser to cover the Life of the Loan Flood Certification” where applicable. But in general, there are some areas where an FHA mortgage simply is not possible | more...

September 4, 2019

HUD Disaster Resources

By Bruce Reichstein

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is reminding homeowners of the disaster resources available from federal agencies including HUD, the FHA, FEMA, and more. Those in federally declared disaster areas are eligible for special FHA home loan forbearance and other foreclosure avoidance measures. But loan forbearance and foreclosure avoidance are NOT automatic. All home owners still paying their mortgages at the time of the disaster should contact their lenders to discuss next steps and how to make arrangements to avoid home loan default and foreclosure. Lenders cannot help borrowers who do not do so, and it pays to be proactive, especially where FHA mortgages are concerned. FHA Foreclosure and Loss Mitigation Policy FHA lenders are given freedom to use “reasonable judgment in determining who is an ‘affected borrower’ in | more...