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The move targets those with loans backed by the Department of
Housing and Urban Development, Department of Agriculture or
Department of Veterans Affairs. They will be brought closer in
line to those backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the White
House said.
Homeowners who are still "looking for work, re-training, having
trouble catching up on back taxes and insurance, or are
continuing to experience hardship for another reason," are
eligible, it added in a statement.
"Where agencies have the authority and depending on homeowners'
financial conditions, agencies will require or encourage
mortgage servicers to offer borrowers new payment reduction
options to help them remain in their home."
The Biden administration has taken several steps aimed at
protecting homeowners during the COVID-19 outbreak, including
extending an eviction moratorium until July 31. The pandemic has
upended the nation's economy's since emerging in early 2020 and
has caused more than 600,000 deaths. https://tmsnrt.rs/2W44vAe
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) last month
finalized new protections for struggling homeowners as it seeks
to prevent a wave of foreclosures in coming months, but it
stopped short of a blanket ban.
Black and Hispanic U.S. mortgage borrowers are much more likely
to be delinquent or in a "forbearance" program than white
borrowers, highlighting how the COVID-19 crisis is exacerbating
systemic racial disparities, CFPB data show.
The consumer watchdog agency is also scrutinizing mortgage
servicers' compliance with pandemic relief programs, according
to a Reuters report.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Pravin Char)
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