Release No. 090914-23
Press Contact Only:
Connie Helmlinger, NCHFA, 919-877-5607 cshelmlinger@nchfa.com
Brian Rapp, NCHFA, 919-877-5655 bprapp@nchfa.com
The recent announcement of 206 layoffs at the Performance Fibers plant in Moncure doesn’t have to translate into mortgage payment problems or home foreclosures. A statewide program that already has helped more than 80 Chatham County residents hold on to their homes still has funds available.
The North Carolina Foreclosure Prevention Fund has helped 17,000 homeowners statewide keep up with mortgage payments while they seek or train for jobs. The program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, has available funds to assist approximately 4,000 more homeowners.
Already in 2014, more than 19,000 North Carolina homeowners have received foreclosure notices, including 76 in Chatham County.
The NC Foreclosure Prevention Fund makes mortgage payments for qualified unemployed homeowners – including returning veterans and people recovering from temporary hardships such as divorce – while they look for jobs or complete job training. Homeowners do not need to be behind on their mortgage payments to apply.
Assistance is offered in two forms:
- A zero-interest, deferred loan of up to $36,000 to help pay mortgage and related costs for up to 36 months while the homeowner seeks or retrains for a job. No repayment is due as long as the owner lives in the home, and the loan is forgiven after the owner lives there 10 years.
- A zero-interest loan to pay off a second mortgage. This can reduce the homeowner’s total monthly payment to an affordable level, and can help a homeowner who finds a new job but at a reduced income.
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The North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, a self-supporting public agency, has financed 221,000 homes and apartments since its creation in 1973.
