Both major mortgage GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide relief to homeowners impacted by disasters such as Hurricane Harvey and Irma, which caused extensive destruction along the Southeast coast of Texas, certain areas in Louisiana and a good portion of Florida the last few weeks.
As communities and households are struggling to recover, repair, and in a lot of cases rebuild following the storm’s damaging winds, rain, and flooding, mortgage relief can make a big difference.
Freddie Mac
In a September 6, 2017 press release Freddie Mac outlined their disaster relief policies. Mortgage servicers are authorized to offer relief options to those affected who are located in “presidentially declared Major Disaster Areas where federal Individual Assistance programs have been extended.”
Relief options may include:
- Foreclosure forbearance for up to 12 months
- Waiving penalties or late fees
- Not reporting forbearance or delinquencies to credit bureaus
Vice President of Single-Family Servicer Performance Management, Yvette Gilmore, urged homeowners affected by the hurricane to reach out to their mortgage servicer as soon as their area is listed as a disaster area by FEMA, saying, “We stand ready to work with the nation’s servicers to ensure that mortgage relief is made available to homeowners who may be affected,” she also added, “We will instruct servicers to work with borrowers who have mortgages owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac to provide up to 12 months of forbearance.”
Fannie Mae
Fannie Mae also released a press release, dated September 7, 2016, expressing concern for those impacted by Hurricane Harvey and Irma, and reminding both homeowners and mortgage servicers of mortgage assistance options available through their disaster relief policies.
These assistance options can include:
- Suspending foreclosures by providing forbearance for up to 12 months;
- Waiving assessments of penalties or late fees against borrowers with disaster-damaged homes; and
- Not reporting forbearance or delinquencies caused by the disaster to the nation’s credit bureaus.
Carlos Perez, Senior Vice President and Chief Credit Officer at Fannie Mae stated, “Fannie Mae and our lending and servicing partners are focused on ensuring assistance is offered to individuals and families in need. We are monitoring the path of the storm and have provided our Single-Family lenders and servicers and our Multifamily DUS® lenders and borrowers with the tools and flexibility to assist impacted borrowers, renters, and communities.”
American Financial Resources
AFR has multiple options for home owners to take advantage of during a Presidential declared disaster, as well as other options to make the rebuilding or renovation process easier. Our support team helps our brokers navigate through concerns and questions customers may have since they could be dealing with multiple agencies. Learn more by visiting www.afrwholesale.com.
Photography by [lavizzara] © Shutterstock.com
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Tags: hurricane, mortgage relief
