GreenPath and the Department of Housing and Urban Development Explore Solutions to Nation’s Foreclosure Crisis
Farmington Hills, Mich., July 9, 2008 – Today, leadership and staff at GreenPath Debt Solutions’ corporate headquarters in Farmington Hills, Michigan, welcomed Steve Preston, Secretary of U.S. Housing and Urban Development, for a roundtable discussion on the nation’s housing problems and potential solutions. Preston, who acknowledged that the effective provision of counseling services is a key solution to the pressing issue of home foreclosures, had an opportunity to hear from GreenPath’s frontline counselors, as well as from mortgage industry representatives and GreenPath’s housing counseling clients. All of the participants informed Preston of their opinion that housing counseling is needed when people face foreclosure challenges, but would be most valuable early on to educate people about mortgage products before they commit to a lending agreement.
GreenPath’s counselors offered Preston a pulse on the issues their clients are facing with regard to their housing payment delinquencies and foreclosures. They also shared issues faced when counselors are negotiating with lenders on behalf of their clients. GreenPath’s counselors reported that lenders have recently been more receptive to mitigating losses earlier on than they have been in the past and reported client trends including:
- A sense of victimization disclosed by clients who did not really understand what they were getting into when they signed their mortgage papers
- A majority of people “upside down” on their mortgage, owing more than the home is worth — by as much as $150,000 in some areas of the country
- Growing numbers of people who came to GreenPath for nonprofit support and assistance after first paying thousands of dollars to for-profit companies that did not provide any relief
- The general mismanagement of personal finances as a leading cause of credit and housing challenges
- A feeling that most people get their education about borrowing money from advertising campaigns or lenders, rather than from an unbiased information source
“With every call, I am struck that it is a shame we are talking to people about budgeting, money management and better mortgage options when their housing payment is already delinquent,” said Veronica Smith, a counselor with GreenPath since 2004. “If we could share all of this information with them before they buy, they’d have what they need to avoid foreclosure proceedings — and so much of their pain and stress.”
At the conclusion of the roundtable, Preston shared his appreciation for how counseling helps so many people keep their homes and avoid further financial misfortune.
Individuals seeking help with housing or foreclosure issues can reach a GreenPath housing counselor now at (866) 648-8122.