The nation's largest mortgage servicers, in partnership with other market participants and members of the HOPE NOW alliance, have begun sending the third round of HOPE NOW letters to at-risk mortgage borrowers. The letters encourage homeowners who may be experiencing difficulty paying their mortgage to call the Homeowner's HOPE Hotline, (888) 995-HOPE, for immediate help.
‘We have already seen from the preceding two rounds of letters that this is working,’ says Faith Schwartz, executive director of HOPE NOW. ‘This is a top priority for all involved in HOPE NOW.’
In November 2007, HOPE NOW sent out approximately 233,000 letters to at-risk homeowners asking them to call their servicer for assistance. As a result of these letters, more than 16% of borrowers responded by contacting their servicer – far more than the normal response rate of 2% to 3%, the organization notes.
