District Provides Mitigation Kit for Residents Facing Foreclosure

[Guest DC Government Worker]

he DC Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) today released a Foreclosure Mitigation Kit, targeted to District residents who may be having trouble keeping up with mortgage payments, or who may be facing foreclosure of their homes.

 

“We hope this kit will provide sufficient information and options for those residents who are experiencing problems paying their mortgages,” said DISB Commissioner Thomas E. Hampton. “The effect that foreclosures have on our community is a major concern in the District of Columbia and we want to mitigate this issue before it affects all facets of the economy.”

 

The Foreclosure Mitigation Kit is a step-by-step guide for consumers on what to do if they are facing foreclosure. In easy-to-understand language, it describes what happens during the pre-foreclosure and foreclosure phases, loan refinancing, how to prevent foreclosure, and what to do after the home has been saved. The kit also includes several pieces of materials from federal government agencies such as the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Reserve Board.

 

DISB released this kit as a direct response to the agency’s recently commissioned study, Subprime Mortgage Lending in the District of Columbia, which showed that subprime loans disproportionately went to single, low- and moderate-income households in wards 4, 5, 7 and 8. The study showed that those who had subprime or high-cost mortgages were more likely to be delinquent, which resulted in more home foreclosures in certain wards. The agency has been targeting these more vulnerable populations with its public forums on subprime lending and mortgage default prevention.

 

Besides DISB’s office, the kit will also be made available in hard copy to the constituent services staff at the Council of the District of Columbia, as well as on DISB’s Web site at disb.dc.gov.

 

DISB Foreclosure Mitigation Kit