Housing Counselors
If you want to keep your home, you don’t have to go through the foreclosure prevention process alone. A counselor with a housing counseling agency can assess your situation, answer your questions, go over your options, prioritize your debts, and help you prepare for discussions with your lender. Housing counseling services usually are free or low cost.
A counselor can help you:
- Review your financial situation, determine what options are available to you, and negotiate with your lender
- Learn which of the various workout arrangements lenders consider makes the most sense for you and your family, based on your circumstances
- Call the lender with you or on your behalf to discuss a workout plan
- Protect you from future credit problems before you get too far behind on mortgage payments
- Give you information on services and programs in your area that provide financial, legal, medical or other assistance
A good counselor will help you create a monthly budget plan to ensure you meet all your monthly expenses, including your mortgage payment. Your personal financial plan will clearly show how much money you have available to make the mortgage payment. This analysis will help you and your lender determine whether a reduced or delayed payment schedule could help you.
To get in touch with a counselor, you have the following choices:
- Call toll free (800) 569-4287 on weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (6:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time). The same number can give you an automated referral to the three housing counseling agencies located closest to you.
- Visit the website for HUD-approved National and Regional Housing Counseling Intermediaries by Clicking Here to Visit the Website. (http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcs.cfm?weblistaction=summary)
- Call the local office of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (www.hud.gov) or the housing authority in your state, city, or county for help in finding a legitimate housing counseling agency nearby.
- Consider contacting the NeighborWorks® Center for Foreclosure Solutions at 888-995-HOPE or www.nw.org. The Center is an initiative of NeighborWorks America.
