One of the first Administration actions provides meaningful support to homeowners struggling financially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
Yesterday, the Biden Administration requested the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and other Federal Agencies to extend its foreclosure and eviction moratorium for single family mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) or guaranteed by the Office of Native American Programs’ Section 184 and 184A loan guarantee programs through March 31, 2021. Today, HUD executed one of the first Administration actions to provide meaningful support to the nation’s individuals and families who are struggling to make their mortgage payments due to the financial devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As President Biden promised, his new Administration is quickly addressing the widespread needs of a nation that is in urgent need of meaningful assistance to begin combatting the effects of COVID-19,” said Acting Federal Housing Commissioner Janet Golrick. “Immediately safeguarding borrowers with HUD-insured or guaranteed mortgages is an important first step in tackling larger, systemic housing challenges that must be overcome.”
The moratorium prohibits servicers from initiating or proceeding with foreclosure and foreclosure-related eviction actions for HUD insured or guaranteed single family forward and reverse mortgages, except for those secured by legally vacant and abandoned properties. Further, HUD requires mortgage servicers to provide up to six months of COVID-19 forbearance when a borrower experiencing a financial hardship due to COVID-19 requests this assistance, and up to an additional six months of COVID-19 forbearance for a borrower who requests an extension of the initial forbearance.
HUD encourages borrowers with HUD-insured or guaranteed mortgages who can make their mortgage payments to continue to do so. Those who are struggling financially because of COVID-19 should engage with their mortgage servicer – the entity to which they make their monthly mortgage payments. HUD provides post-COVID-19 forbearance loss mitigation options to assist borrowers with bringing their mortgage current.
Borrowers with FHA-insured mortgages seeking additional information on available options should visit FHA’s COVID-19 Resources for Homeowners web page on FHA.gov. Borrowers with mortgages guaranteed under the Section 184 or Section 184A programs seeking additional information on available options should visit HUD’s COVID-19 Resources for Native Americans web page. Other borrowers are encouraged to visit the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Coronavirus Mortgage and Housing Assistance web pages.