Residents Facing Foreclosure Could Qualify For Federal Relief
Dane County Leaders Promote Foreclosure Prevention Grant Program
WISC-TV (CBS)/Madison, WI
8 July 2011

MADISON, Wis. -- Local homeowners falling into the wave of house foreclosures could qualify for some new federal relief.

Dane County leaders are promoting the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program. The deadline to apply is only weeks away. Under the program, 30,000 homeowners from 27 states will receive assistance and perhaps find some time to resolve their housing crisis, officials said.

Kim Wolfe said she is facing foreclosure.

"It was tough to start," said Wolfe, who has been packing her belongings into boxes. "I just started a couple of weeks ago. It's like a punch in the stomach. This is the first time I've ever been unemployed ever."

Wolfe is now packing for an unknown future. Recently divorced as well, the newly unemployed single mother is now late on her mortgage payment for the first time.

"(I miss) just the freedom of having money in your checking account to do things," said Wolfe. "It's really hit the kids. Between the divorce, and now this, the pressure and the zigzagging and the not knowing."

Dane County Executive Joe Parisi, along with other housing advocates, are promoting the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program, known as EHLP, which will allow selected individuals to receive interest-free loans of up to $50,000.

"Homeowners who are facing foreclosure do not have to go through this process alone," Parisi said. "There is help available, and we'll be talking about some of that help."

"This EHLP program, it will in effect pay the arrearage on a mortgage that is delinquent and also help to supplement the monthly payment for a borrower who's had their income reduced in the recent past," said Bill Druliner, with GreenPath Debt Solutions.

While the federal money is technically a loan, it can also be considered a grant. If a person's monthly mortgage is $1,200 but that person is $800 short, as long as he or she pays $400 a month for five years, the loan is forgivable, thus making it a grant.

Applying for the program is a flicker of hope for Wolfe, who will need a little bit of luck to land the federal assistance.

"We all laugh about winning the lottery, but you have to buy a lottery ticket first," said Wolfe. "That's what we figure our odds are."

The deadline to apply is July 22, so homeowners must act quickly. For more information on how to apply, go to www.findehlp.org.

For those who apply and don't receive the grant, foreclosure experts said that, at the very least, homeowners who have any concerns should contact a counseling agency approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Services should always be free of charge. One counseling option in Madison is GreenPath Debt Solutions at 608-221-5971.

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