Florida Gets 418 Million for Distressed Homeowners

This past Friday, Florida was awarded $418 million of federal stimulus spending to help unemployed homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are actually worth. Florida homeowners are eagerly awaiting details of this program, which was announced by President Obama last month. The awards come from a $1.5-billion Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets.

Florida will get $418 million.
 
Treasury officials released guidelines telling state agencies how this stimulus might be distributed:

• Modifying mortgages or giving lenders an incentive to forgive a portion of loans to make payments affordable.
• Paying down part of a mortgage to make it possible to modify the rest of it.
• Making it easier to complete “short sales,” in which homes are sold for less than the mortgage.
• Allowing owners to give up their deeds to avoid foreclosure.
• Aiding unemployed borrowers to help them avoid foreclosure.
• Giving incentives to lenders to reduce or modify second liens on mortgages.
• The program must be limited to those who owe no more than $729,750. State agencies may choose to target low- and moderate-income borrowers.
• More specific information will come from the Florida Housing Finance Corp., a state-funded agency, which promises to provide updates for consumers on its website: FloridaHousing.org.