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Fact Sheet: Helping Responsible Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure
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For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary October 17, 2008

Fact Sheet: Helping Responsible Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure The Federal
Government Is Addressing Housing Market Challenges And Assisting Struggling
Homeowners Across Our Nation

ÿÿWhite House News

ÿÿÿÿÿ In Focus: Homeownership

"[T]he decline in the housing market has left many Americans concerned
about losing their homes. My Administration launched the HOPE NOW Alliance,
which brings together homeowners and lenders and mortgage servicers and
others to find ways to prevent foreclosure. We're also making it easier for
responsible homeowners to refinance into affordable mortgages insured by
the Federal Housing Administration. Americans _ can know that if you're
struggling to meet your mortgage there are ways you can get help."

_ President George W. Bush, 10/11/08

The Federal Government is collaborating with State and local partners to
use the best tools available to keep homeowners in their homes. Americans
need to know that help is available. The actions of the Federal Government
are helping to address a key problem in the housing market: the excess
supply of homes on the market. By helping responsible borrowers facing
preventable foreclosures stay in their homes and ensuring that mortgage
financing remains available to consumers, our housing market will be able
to recover _ and that recovery will help our broader economy grow.

The Administration's actions have helped more than two million responsible
borrowers keep their homes.President Bush and his Administration have:
  þ Facilitated the formation of HOPE NOW: This program helped bring
    together lenders, mortgage servicers, and others to facilitate loan
    refinancing and develop other ways to prevent foreclosures.
  þ Increased access to government guaranteed home loans through the
    Department of Housing and Urban Development's Federal Housing
    Administration (FHA): FHA offers refinancing to homeowners who have
    good credit histories but cannot afford their mortgage payments. FHA
    remains a safe and affordable alternative to the high-priced mortgage
    loans that threaten homeowners' ability to retain their homes.
      þ FHA Secure _ launched by President Bush and his Administration _
        helps American families avoid foreclosure by refinancing mortgages
        for borrowers who can afford a new loan insured by FHA.
      þ HOPE for Homeowners is another program that has just been
        implemented to help struggling families refinance their mortgages
        with FHA. The HOPE for Homeowners program will refinance mortgages
        for borrowers who are having difficulty making their payments but
        can afford a new loan insured by FHA. Since President Bush signed
        this legislation into law this past July, the government has worked
        diligently to develop and implement the Hope for Homeowners program
        as directed by Congress.
  þ Neighborhood stabilization: HUD recently announced $4 billion in grants
    to States and local communities to provide targeted emergency
    assistance to acquire and redevelop foreclosed and abandoned properties
    that might otherwise have hurt their communities.
  þ Workshops on homeowner solutions: HUD recently hosted more than 800
    Federal, State, and community leaders from around the Nation for a
    two-day housing summit. Regional workshops are also scheduled to
    discuss best practices and innovative approaches to help struggling
    homeowners.
  þ Housing counseling grants: The Administration has dramatically
    increased funding for housing counseling grants and foreclosure
    prevention activities. Nearly 400 State and local non-profits are among
    the recipients that will benefit from more than $400 million in grants
    this year. This counseling can be the key to helping families keep
    their homes.

As The Treasury Department And The GSEs Increase Their Purchases Of
Mortgage-Related Assets, Affordability Should Improve For Americans

The Federal Government now has the authority to purchase mortgages and
mortgage-backed securities (MBS), which will help stabilize mortgage
financing and other lending, help remove uncertainty from selling
institutions, and help homeowners. The Treasury Department's new asset
purchase authorities are aimed at getting the mortgage loan and credit
markets working again by purchasing mortgages and MBS from financial
institutions, thereby improving their ability to offer new loans, reducing
the pressure on mortgage rates, and promoting market stability. The
Treasury Department is also working with HUD and the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation to help as many homeowners as possible stay in their
homes, while protecting taxpayers.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the new regulator for government
sponsored enterprises (GSEs) is working with the GSEs to preserve the
availability of mortgage financing. Shortly after the housing bill was
enacted, FHFA placed Fannie and Freddie into conservatorship and is working
with them to ensure they continue to fulfill their mission to make mortgage
financing available to consumers.

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