Articles in Category: Special FHA Programs

January 26, 2022

FHA and HUD Expand REO Sales Options For Owner-Occupiers

They are sometimes known as HUD homes, more formally as HUD real-estate owned homes–properties that were purchased with FHA mortgages that later fell into loan default and ultimately foreclosure. The FHA and HUD, in such cases, have a reimbursement program for the lender but the property itself reverts back to HUD upon foreclosure. The HUD official site states, “A HUD home is a 1-to-4 unit residential property acquired by HUD as a result of a foreclosure action on an FHA-insured mortgage. HUD becomes the property owner and offers it for sale to recover the loss on the foreclosure claim.” And now, thanks to a move by the FHA and HUD, there are expanded opportunities for borrowers who want to be owner-occupiers to bid on and purchase these HUD homes before | more...

January 21, 2022

HUD Announces Disaster Relief For Alaska, Missouri, And Tennessee

By Joe Wallace

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced federal disaster assistance to three states affected by natural disasters in 2021 and in 2022. Certain counties in Tennessee, Alaska, and Missouri are now eligible for federal disaster relief, FHA foreclosure moratoriums, and more. Tennessee was affected by severe storms, high winds, and tornadoes from December 10 to December 11, 2021; in January of 2022 the President issued a major disaster declaration for the following Tennessee counties: Cheatham Davidson Dickson Gibson Henderson Henry Lake Obion Stewart Sumner Weakley Wilson The President also announced a major disaster declaration for portions of Alaska affected by severe storms, high winds, floods, landslides, and mudslides from October 29 to November 1, 2021. In January 2022 the President declared the Kenai Peninsula Borough a major | more...

January 11, 2022

HUD Announces Disaster Relief For Counties In Washington State

By Joe Wallace

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced federal disaster relief for certain counties in Washington State affected by natural disasters late in 2021. The following counties have been declared federal disaster areas: Clallam Skagit Whatcom That is in addition to federal disaster areas for the Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian Tribe, and Quileute Tribe in Washington. The relief is intended to “supplement state, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by flooding and mudslides” from November 13 to November 15 in 2021. If you live in any of the affected counties or tribal areas mentioned above, contact your loan officer immediately and ask your lender about the following relief and foreclosure prevention remedies for those with FHA mortgages: Immediate Foreclosure Relief In federal disaster areas, there | more...

January 5, 2022

FHA And HUD Announce Disaster Relief For Arkansas and Colorado

By Joe Wallace

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced federal disaster relief for portions of Arkansas and Colorado affected by natural disasters. In the case of the Arkansas declaration, the following counties are eligible for relief thanks to a Presidential major disaster area declaration: Craighead Jackson Mississippi Poinsett Woodruff These counties were hit by severe storms and tornadoes in December 2021. For the Colorado declaration, Boulder County has been declared a major disaster area due to wildfires that began in late December 2021 and into 2022. The declaration also means that FEMA funding is provided to the affected areas “on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures”. If you live in any of the affected counties mentioned here, the following disaster relief options are available to you: Immediate Foreclosure | more...

December 22, 2021

FHA And HUD Announce Disaster Relief For Alabama Counties

By Joe Wallace

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced the availability of federal disaster relief in certain counties in Alabama affected by storms and flooding in October of 2021. A presidential major disaster declaration was placed into effect for the counties of Jefferson and Shelby. An FHA/HUD press release published at HUD.gov adds that there is also federal funding available from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA offered on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide, but this is not part of the relief offered directly to homeowners. What is available for them? HUD offers “immediate foreclosure relief” for FHA mortgages in the form of a 90-day moratorium “on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages commenced on the date of the Presidential major disaster declaration, and | more...

December 14, 2021

HUD Announces Disaster Relief For Kentucky Home Owners In Federal Disaster Areas

By Joe Wallace

The FHA and HUD have announced disaster relief for FHA borrowers who live in the federally declared disaster areas in the State of Kentucky. The declaration was made effective as of December 10, 2021, in the wake of flooding, tornadoes, and other natural disaster-related issues. The President announced major disaster declarations for the following counties in Kentucky: Caldwell Fulton Graves Hopkins Marshall Muhlenberg Taylor Warren An FHA/HUD press release published at HUD.gov adds that there is also relief on a “cost-sharing basis” in Caldwell, Fulton, Graves, Hopkins, Marshall, Muhlenberg, Taylor, and Warren counties. What does the FHA/HUD disaster relief announcement mean for FHA borrowers and homeowners? HUD offers “immediate foreclosure relief” for FHA mortgages in the form of a 90-day moratorium “on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages | more...

November 8, 2021

FHA Mortgage Relief Still Available For Those Affected By COVID

By Joe Wallace

If you have trouble making your monthly FHA mortgage loan payments, you are not alone. There seem to be so many borrowers struggling that the FHA and HUD have announced multiple extensions to COVD-19 mortgage forbearance policies. Indeed, there have been so many updates and extensions to FHA loan policy in this area that it’s hard to keep it all straight. What’s the most current guidance from the FHA and HUD regarding those who need FHA loan forbearance due to COVID-19 pandemic issues? On September 27, 2021, the FHA issued a Mortgagee Letter, FHA ML 21-24, which explains to lenders the current FHA policy toward such mortgage relief: “Upon Borrower request, Mortgagees must offer a COVID-19 Forbearance to any Borrower that experiences an adverse impact on their ability to make | more...

October 6, 2021

Federal Disaster Relief For FHA Borrowers In Montana, New Hampshire

By Joe Wallace

The 2021 disaster season has seen a large number of federal disaster area declarations; that combined with a global pandemic and it’s easy to see that mortgage relief in any form is a much-needed thing. In October 2021, the FHA and HUD announced foreclosure relief in areas of New Hampshire and Montana affected by natural disasters. In New Hampshire, those areas included the counties of Cheshire and Sullivan which were harmed by severe storms and floods. In Montana, areas affected by something known as the Richard Spring Fire received a major disaster declaration for Rosebud County and the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation. In declaring these areas as federal disaster areas, HUD is able to offer foreclosure relief in those areas–a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures of FHA-insured mortgages starting on the | more...

October 1, 2021

FHA Mortgage Relief Announced For Vermont Disaster Areas

By Bruce Reichstein

In many cases, the FHA and HUD make announcements about disaster relief after tropical storms, hurricanes, forest fires. But you don’t have to experience a Category 3 hurricane to be severely affected by weather; one excellent example of this comes with the HUD announcement of federal disaster assistance for parts of the State of Vermont that were in the path of severe storms and flooding at the end of July 2021. On September 29, 2021, there was a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for two Vermont counties–Windham and Bennington. Thanks to that Presidential declaration, HUD has offered an automatic 90-day foreclosure moratorium for those two counties–this affects those with FHA mortgages, “commenced on the date of the Presidential major disaster declaration, and foreclosures of mortgages to Native American borrowers guaranteed under | more...

September 28, 2021

FHA And HUD Announce New Foreclosure Relief Measures For Those Recently Affected By COVID-19

By Joe Wallace

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced new COVID-19 relief measures for those with FHA mortgages. This news comes on the heels of a previously issued FHA Mortgagee letter, ML2021-19, “Extension of the Foreclosure-Related Eviction Moratorium and Expiration of the Foreclosure Moratorium in Connection with the Presidentially-Declared COVID-19 National Emergency” which contained the following statement: “HUD’s foreclosure moratorium is set to expire on July 31, 2021, and HUD is not extending that moratorium further”. That statement is true for many; the FHA and HUD have added more help but it is intended for those who have experienced recent financial difficulty because of COVID-19. For those who have already taken advantage of this help, the loan forbearance offered borrowers a chance to save their homes even during the prolonged | more...