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Housing Bill and Free Online Tool
May Help Homeowners
Updated December 17, 2009
The Housing and Economic Recovery Act creates a new program to help hundreds of thousands of families save their
homes from foreclosure and a new online tool will tell you in an instant
if you're eligible.
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Loan
Modifications Fast
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The program is built on the idea, expressed by
Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke, that creating new equity for troubled
homeowners is likely to be a more effective way to
help families keep their home.
Modified loans are be based on a family’s ability to repay the loan, ensuring
affordability and sustainable homeownership.
As well as the borrower's ability to pay, the bill takes other factors
into account such as limiting loans on a per county basis to allow
families in all areas of the country to access to the program. The
criteria may seem overly complex and
confusing for homeowners already stressed by the prospect of losing
their home A
free online tool just introduced by Lending Tree will help struggling
homeowners quickly determine if they are eligible for an FHA loan under the new law's
complex rules.
At this point, most homeowners have no idea if
they qualify for a loan under the new bill . The new eligibility tool will
help families cut through the bureaucratic barriers associated with the
bill.
“We’ve discovered that most borrowers are unaware
of FHA-insured loans and what it takes to actually qualify for one,” says
Nicole Hall, editor in chief of the LendingTree Smart Borrower Center. “In
light of recent news regarding the surging popularity of FHA loans, we’ve
set out to make the eligibility process for an FHA-insured loan a lot
easier to do.
Traditionally, FHA-insured loans have been seen as
an alternative for lower-income borrowers, borrowers with low down
payments or those with shaky credit histories but not anymore. Now, even well-to-do
borrowers in affluent housing markets can
qualify for an FHA loan. The new law raises conforming loan limits for
the FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to $625,500.
In addition to helping homeowners directly, the
new housing law provides an additional $3.92 billion to
communities
hardest hit by foreclosures and delinquencies with supplemental
Community Development Block Grant Funds. The grants will be used to
purchase foreclosed homes, at a discount, and rehabilitate or redevelop
the homes to stabilize neighborhoods and stem the significant losses in
house values of neighboring homes.
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