Bowling Green, Mo. - Over 90 families faced with losing their homes have contacted the not-for-profit North East Community Action Corporation (NECAC) for foreclosure counseling since April. NECAC started the Foreclosure Mitigation Program at that time after receiving $247,000 in grants as part of the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Program (NFMCP). NeighborWorks America, a national non-profit organization created by Congress, provided $142,000 and the Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC) supplied the remaining $105,000.
The program is designed to provide foreclosure mitigation assistance in states and areas with high rates of defaults and foreclosures primarily in the subprime housing market. According to Christina Windmiller, Foreclosure Mitigation Counselor at NECAC, new clients are contacting the agency at a rate of two a day.
NECAC offers the program in its 12-county service area of Lewis, Lincoln, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, Pike, Ralls, Randolph, Shelby, St. Charles and Warren counties. Under the program, applicants contact NECAC and an assessment is made of the client's mortgage, payment status and the urgency in the delinquency of foreclose process. Communications are set up with the lender and a loss mitigation package is submitted. A written action plan is developed for foreclosure avoidance. The action plan provides recommendations for resolving the foreclosure or starts the discussion of foreclosure in general or the sale of the property.
"Our program is available to everyone and there are no income guidelines or restrictions," Windmiller said. "There is no reason to pay for a service that you can get for free from a not-for-profit organization,"
Windmiller stressed that the time to seek assistance is well before the foreclosure process begins. She says it takes an average of two months to get the process rolling. The more time the agency has to work on the foreclosure, the better the chances are of families remaining in their homes. Of the 90 clients who have contacted NECAC concerning a foreclosure, 65 have come to a negotiated settlement. Some have lost their homes but others have negotiated a settlement and are still at home. For families that have lost their home due to foreclosure, NECAC assists them with finding suitable alternative housing.
NECAC does not provide financial assistance to clients but instead acts as a negotiator between parties. Those negotiations sometimes involve a loan modification where a loan is converted from an adjustable rate to a fixed rate or the term of the loan is extended. Windmiller says just getting the communications process started can be a difficult step but having a not-for-profit organization involved can sometimes help.
Persons interested in receiving more information about the foreclosure assistance program should contact their local NECAC County Service Center or call NECAC's Housing Development Department at 573-324-6622 extension 329 or toll free at 800-748-7636.
NECAC is a 12-county area not-for-profit social service, community health and public housing Community Action Agency that serves the low-income, elderly, youth, handicapped and disadvantaged. The agency's Central Administration Offices are located in Bowling Green, with NECAC County Service Centers operated in each county.
