Last Updated: March 19, 2009: 3:41 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- As
loan servicers scramble to implement President
Obama's foreclosure prevention plan, the
administration on Thursday unveiled a Web site to
assist homeowners in determining whether they are
eligible for help.
Obama rolled out his $75 billion
foreclosure prevention program on Feb. 18, saying it
would begin two weeks later when financial
institutions received the guidelines.
The two-part Obama plan calls
for servicers to reduce monthly payments to no more
than 31% of eligible borrowers' pre-tax income or to
refinance eligible mortgages even if the homeowner
has little or no equity. It also provides thousands
of dollars in incentives for servicers and borrowers
to participate.
Servicers, however, are still
updating their systems to process modification and
refinancing applications. And they are waiting for
clarification on a few points of the president's
plan.
It could be weeks before
borrowers learn whether they qualify for either
program. Many have complained about being turned
away by their servicers.
Administration officials
reiterated the need for borrowers to be patient as
the servicers work to implement the program. The
nation's four major servicers -- Citigroup (C,
Fortune
500), Bank of America (BAC,
Fortune
500), JPMorgan Chase (JPM,
Fortune
500) and Wells Fargo (WFC,
Fortune
500) -- have said they would participate.
"They are moving as fast as
humanly possible," a senior administration
official said Wednesday in a discussion about the
government's new Web site.
The site can be found at makinghomeaffordable.gov.
Contact your servicer
Some financial institutions,
while still not processing applications, are
encouraging borrowers to contact them and submit
their paperwork. That way homeowners can learn
whether they qualify soon after the systems are in
place.
Bank of America, for instance,
is collecting borrowers' information. If it's clear
they aren't eligible for the Obama plan, the bank
looks to help them through one of the other loan
modification programs already underway. If they
might qualify for the president's program, Bank of
America is compiling taking down names for future
follow-up.
"As soon as we're ready,
we'll make calls to the people who've already
contacted us," said Rick Simon, a Bank of
America spokesman.
Citigroup, meanwhile, is already
modifying mortgage payments to no more than 31% of
borrowers' monthly income, as part of its November
bailout from the federal government.
"We anticipate that the
modifications we are making will qualify under the
Obama plan once the details are finalized,"
said Mark Rodgers, a Citigroup spokesman.
Servicers are encouraging
borrowers to collect the financial information
needed to determine eligibility.
"We're also asking our
customers to gather the necessary documents so that
when our systems are up and running, we can begin
quickly to help those who will likely qualify,"
said a Wells Fargo spokeswoman.
Determining eligibility
The administration's new Web
site helps homeowners determine whether they might
qualify for either a loan modification or
refinancing. It also provides links to finding
government-approved housing counselors and warns
people to avoid foreclosure rescue scams.
Borrowers can answer a set of
questions to learn whether they could benefit from
either the Obama modification or refinancing
programs. The loan modification interactive tool,
for instance, asks whether the borrower lives in the
home, has a mortgage of less than $729,500 that was
originated before Jan. 1 and is having trouble
making payments.
The site also helps homeowners
determine whether their monthly payments are more
than 31% of their pre-tax income. And it gives an
estimate of how low their new payment might go under
the plan. For example, if you earn $4,000 a month
and pay $1,400 a month, you could see your payments
drop to $1,240 under the modification plan.
The refinancing tool, meanwhile,
provides links to Fannie Mae (FNM,
Fortune
500) and Freddie Mac (FRE,
Fortune
500) that let borrowers determine whether they
have loans held by either mortgage finance company,
a key eligibility criteria.
Borrowers will also find a
checklist of financial documents -- including pay
stubs, tax returns and credit card statements --
that they will need to present when applying for the
program.
The administration estimates
that its foreclosure prevention fix will help up to
nine million homeowners.
"We want to encourage as
many eligible borrowers as possible to take
advantage of our program," said a senior
administration official. "This site encourages
borrowers to investigate if they are eligible for
one or both programs." 