HOPE LoanPort, the housing counselor Web portal developed by HOPE NOW and tech provider IndiSoft LLC, has expanded to 25 states and over 100 cities, HOPE NOW says.
HOPE LoanPort allows Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved counselors to submit completed Home Affordable Modification Program applications directly to a homeowner's servicer, track the status and provide borrowers with more timely decisions.
Home Free USA has signed 32 affiliates and NeighborWorks America has participation commitments from the following affiliates: Los Angeles Neighborhood Housing Services; Community HousingWorks, in San Diego; The Housing Partnership Inc., in Louisville, Ky.; Neighborhood Housing Services of Baltimore; and St. Mary Development Corp., in Dayton, Ohio.
In addition, Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Atlanta, with 30 offices in four states in the Southeast, and Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Dallas, with 21 offices in three states in the Southwest, will also participate in helping homeowners through the HOPE LoanPort.
HOPE LoanPort's program began in December 2009, in nine key markets, with HOPE NOW's housing counselor partners. The coalition anticipates that both the number of HUD-approved counseling agencies and the number of servicers involved with the portal will grow. Currently, six servicers – American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc., Chase, GMAC Financial Services, SunTrust Mortgage Inc., PNC Mortgage and Saxon Mortgage – are involved in the pilot program. Other banks are currently testing the portal, HOPE NOW says.
"We have received very positive feedback from servicers and counselors," says Sanjeev Dahiwadkar, CEO and founder of IndiSoft. "We are hearing that HOPE LoanPort eases the traffic jams that in the past tied up the system, most specifically getting documents in a piecemeal way or not at all."
SOURCE: HOPE NOW