Homeowner Foreclosure Assistance Program Expiring

Photo Credit: ABQ Business First

New Mexico’s Attorney General,  Hector Balderas, said  that there is help available for Albuquerque and Rio Rancho homeowners who may soon be behind on their home loan payments.  They can apply to the Home Affordable Modification Program to avoid foreclosure. This government program for struggling homeowners expires at the end of this year.

In touting this program the AG explained that the foreclosure rate for Albuquerque and Rio Rancho is higher than the national average and urges homeowners struggling this year with paying their mortgages to apply.   The government Home Affordable Modification Program is designed to help homeowners obtain loan modifications with affordable payments. Interest rates can drop as low as 2 percent, and the program limits the monthly housing payment at 31 percent of a family’s gross monthly income, according to the state Attorney General’s office.

Albuquerque’s foreclosure rate has been steadily declining since 2012, however New Mexico’s rate is higher than the national average foreclosure rate.  “In August 2016, the latest data available, the metro’s foreclosure rate hit 1.68 percent, the lowest seen since April of 2009, according to data from CoreLogic.  Still, that was higher than the national foreclosure rate, which was 0.90 percent in August. Albuquerque’s highest foreclosure inventory rate hit 4.20 percent in April of 2012.”   Excerpt from Albuquerque Business First, December 7, 2015 by Stephanie Guzman-Barrera