Help For Foreclosure Victims From State And Top Lenders

Posted in Foreclosure, June 27th, 2007 |

Government officials together with executives from prime mortgage lending firms of Massachusetts are to meet today to discuss avenues of escape for the victims of foreclosures.

Dan O’Connell, the secretary of Housing and Economic Development of the Patrick administration has taken the initiative. He corresponded with executives of top ten mortgage firms in Massachusetts asking them to participate. This is a leak information from a person who has seen the letter but chooses to remain anonymous. The meeting is to be held in the offices of Daniel Crane, the Director of the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation. The agenda however was not delineated.
Kofi Jones, the spokeswoman of O’Connell, confirmed the news but did not add anything new. According to her O’Connell was not available for comment. She said that a number of players were being invited to sit at the same table and thrash out a solution.
Sub-prime loans, taken out during the last few years, are mainly responsible for the increase in foreclosure filings in Massachusetts. Suddenly the loans have become delinquent.

Borrowers with poor credit history had been awarded the loans and it was very popular at the time of real estate boom because the initial rates were low. It tempted people to own property in costly Massachusetts. The borrowers wrongly estimated their own capacity to continue with repayments. The end of the road came when interests took a sharp swing upwards.

Governor Deval L. Patrick has already suggested enactment of laws to put a check on foreclosure rates. It included a clause that would require the applicants to sign a form relating to the fixed or adjustable rate of interest. Previous to this recent move, the Patrick administration had called a meeting of lenders, activists, and regulators in April. Suggestions were made asking the State to provide the money to refinance loans so that owners do not get thrown out on the streets.

The Banking Commissioner of Massachusetts state, Steven Antonakes had said in April that he had managed to obtain a temporary freeze for 11 property owners in this region and was already working out ways and means to help others. This action followed on the heels of the steps taken by Patrick in instructing members of his administration to go all out to help the hapless victims by directly negotiating with the lenders.

Via