MD Gets Grant to Continue Foreclosure Prevention Efforts Ranked Among Nation’s Most Effective

The HOPE initiative has helped thousands of financially beleaguered homeowners save their homes from foreclosure.

Crownsville, MD – The National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling program has announced grant awards totaling more than $44.8 million, including $747,000 for foreclosure prevention counseling in Maryland.

More than 1,100 nonprofit counseling agencies and local NeighborWorks organizations across the country are expected to be engaged in the NFMC Program as a result of this, the ninth round of funding awards.

To date, more than 1.89 million families in all 50 states, including the District of Columbia and the U.S. Territories have received foreclosure counseling through the NFMC program since it began in 2007. An additional 129,600 families facing the threat of foreclosure will be directly assisted with these awards. Many more will be helped by the training of foreclosure counselors, provided through the NFMC program. NeighborWorks expects to train 1,600 counselors with the ninth round of NFMC funding.

Maryland, under the leadership of Governor Larry Hogan and Lt. Governor Boyd Rutherford,  consistently ranks near the top in putting its funds to work. HOPE NOW ranks Maryland second in the nation in the percentage of homeowners who have received proprietary bank modifications between 2009 to September 2014, with almost 84,000 homeowners. The state ranks fifth in the utilization of the federal Home Affordable Modification Program, benefitting 119,000 homeowners and 11th in utilization of the federal Home Affordable Refinance Program, with nearly 92,000 homeowners.

Maryland also has been a national leader in using funds from the National Attorney General Mortgage Settlement to benefit financially beleaguered homeowners directly.