Georgia Foreclosure Prevention Resources
For 2009, Georgia ranked 7th among all states in foreclosure rate, an increase of 24.46% from the year before. Nationally, 2009 was the worse year for foreclosures in US history, with 2.8 million property owners receiving a foreclosure notice.
In Georgia, foreclosure is a non-judicial process that doesn’t have to go before a court. A mortgage lender simply has to notify a borrower that he or she is in default, then advertise the intent to sell the property at an auction. At the start of the mortgage crisis a lender could have foreclosed on a home in Georgia in as little as 37 days. In 2006 metro Atlanta was second in the top 100 metropolitan areas for home foreclosures.
In 2008 Governor Sonny Pedue signed Senate Bill 531 which doubled the foreclosure notice time period given to a homeowner, from 15 days to 30. It also requires that the certified letter giving notice include the name, address, and phone number of the servicer who would be able to renegotiate the mortgage terms. Finally, it requires that the current identity of the mortgage holder be disclosed. The law took effect July 1, 2008. Here are the specifics.
As a guide to homeowners in trouble, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, along with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Inc. and NeighborWorks America produced a how-to video titled “Foreclosure Prevention: Hope for Georgia’s Homeowners” that plays online here or is available on DVD by request.
The Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta, the Fannie Mae Foundation, the Homeownership Preservation Foundation, NeighborWorks America, and the United Way have joined together to provide free toll-free counseling at 1-888-995-HOPE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in Spanish and English.
Homeowners who need personal counseling can arrange to meet with counselors throughout the metro Atlanta area.
The Georgia Department of Banking and Finance urges borrowers to take the following steps:
- Don’t ignore the letters from your lender. If you’re struggling to make mortgage payments, contact the servicer’s loss mitigation department immediately. Explain what you are going through and be prepared to back it up with financial information.
- Don’t walk away from your home. Doing so would make it harder to get mortgage assistance.
- Reach out to a US Housing and Urban Development approved housing counseling agency on line or through 1-800-569-4287 or TDD 1-800-877-8339. More information is posted on the department’s website.
Home First is a non-profit foreclosure prevention service based in Macon, GA. The site offers good advice for Georgia homeowners.
If you are unable to reach your servicer or local state program, or if you would like additional assistance in this process contact Mortgage Outreach at 1-866-408-0420. Mortgage Outreach works directly with many servicers to help find solutions for borrowers that are struggling to keep up with their payments.
