Federal Making Home Affordable Program
The Federal Making Home Affordable Program for Loan Modification & Mortgage Refinance has been supported by a $75 billion stimulus package. The federal plan aims to stabilize the plunging housing market and at the same time assist millions of distressed homeowners, who have been faced with financial hardships as well as impending home foreclosures, to either modify their existing upside down home mortgages or refinance them to much lower rates of interest. Here is some crucial information pertaining to the same which could guide households who are considering applying for the Obama Loan Modification Stimulus Plan.
President Obama Making Home Affordable Program has been supported by a $75 billion stimulus package. The federal plan aims to stabilize the plunging housing market and at the same time assist millions of distressed homeowners, who have been faced with financial hardships as well as impending home foreclosures, to either modify their existing upside down home mortgages or refinance them to much lower rates of interest. But you can avail the benefits of the government plan; you need to qualify for it. That is what makes it imperative for struggling house makers to understand the rules laid down in order to be eligible for the federal loan modification or refinance program. Here is some crucial information pertaining to the same which could guide households who are considering applying for the Obama Loan Modification Assistance.
The government plan is available to borrowers in two options, namely the HARP and the HAMP. To be eligible for either of the federal plans, struggling homeowners are required to satisfy certain critical conditions that have been outlined by the rules and regulations of the government scheme. Here is an overview of the same.
The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)In case you fail to qualify for the HARP, you can consider applying for the federal Home Affordable Modification Program or (HAMP). The eligibility criteria for the HAMP are as follows.
- Only primary residences are eligible for a loan modification.
- The value of the existing home mortgage should not exceed $729,750 for a single unit home.
- Your current monthly mortgage payments which include monthly installments, property taxes, insurance and association fees, should not be more than 31% of your gross monthly income.
- Applicants are needed to furnish a letter of listed financial hardships along with the reasons therein.
The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP)In order to be eligible for the Home Affordable Refinance Application or HARP, a borrower must meet the below mentioned requirements.
- The homes to be refinanced should be the primary residence of the loan applicant and not an investment property.
- Mortgage payments for the last 12 months need to be on time.
- The existing home mortgages need to be owned by either Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae.
- The amount owed on the current mortgage should not exceed 105% of the existing market value of the house.
- A home refinance loan applicant needs to provide proof of a stable monthly income. If eligible, the HARP allows you to refinance your existing sub-prime Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) into a more affordable Fixed Rate Mortgage (FRM).
Unlike HARP, Home Affordable Modification Program Lenders allows even households who are lagging behind in paying their current monthly mortgage installments. If you qualify, you can get mortgage rates as low as 2% and the loan durations could be extended to 40 years to make monthly mortgage payments more affordable.
Considering the intricacies involved in the qualification process, it is desirable to avail online professional help from experts for understanding the Home Affordable Modification Program Guidelines. Besides, even if you do not qualify for either HAMP or HARP, there are other alternative options you cannot always look for. To get more information about yo9ur home loan modification or refinance alternatives, it is hereby recommended to use the expert services of reputed online service providers like LoansStore.