State HFAs Awarded Over $13 Million in NFMC Funding

NeighborWorks® America announced last week that it has awarded $44.8 million in funding to support counseling for struggling homeowners to help them avoid foreclosure through the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling (NFMC) program. Twenty-five state HFAs were selected to receive NFMC funds, as well as 18 HUD-approved Housing Counseling Intermediaries and 68 NeighborWorks affiliates. A list of all the grants awarded is available here.

NFMC was established by Congress in 2007 to increase the availability of counseling for homeowners on the verge of foreclosure. NeighborWorks has administered the program since its inception. The recently announced grants are the ninth round of funding provided through NFMC, each one funded through congressional appropriations. Including this latest round of funding, NFMC has awarded over $762 million in funding to support counseling and legal assistance for struggling homeowners.

According to NeighborWorks’ latest Congressional Update on NFMC, released last December, the program has assisted over 1.8 million homeowners. State HFAs have played an integral role in these efforts. Including the latest round of funding, 41 state HFAs have received over $248 million through NFMC.

A study released last year by the Urban Institute found that the NFMC program was effective in helping struggling families remain in their homes. The study found that homeowners who received NFMC counseling were nearly twice as likely to obtain a mortgage modification as those who did not. In addition, those homeowners who received NFMC counseling were three times more likely to receive a loan modification cure compared to non-counseled homeowners. On average, NFMC-counseled homeowners who received a modification had their annual payment reduced by almost $5,000.