AUGUSTA – January 03, 2012 – (RealEstateRama) — Attorney General William J. Schneider announced that eligible Maine borrowers who lost their homes due to foreclosure between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2011 must file a National Mortgage Settlement Claim form by January 18th in order to receive a cash payment from a $1.9 million fund set aside for this purpose.
William J. Schneider in National News |
William J. Schneider in Social Media |
The National Mortgage Settlement Administrator, assigned to handle the logistics of distributing the cash payments, has taken extensive steps to ensure that eligible borrowers are aware of the claims process. In late September through early October notice letters and claim forms were mailed to eligible borrowers. A call center was opened for borrowers to speak with a trained customer service representative to answer questions about the settlement and the National Mortgage Settlement website was updated to allow borrowers to submit their claim forms online. A reminder postcard was sent to non-responders in November and December.
As of December 20, 2012 notices had been mailed to 2,538 eligible borrowers in Maine and 1,056 claims had been filed, for a filing rate of 51 percent.
“Many eligible borrowers who were foreclosed upon by one of the top five services between 2008 and 2011 have not yet filed their claim forms and after January 18th they may not be able to qualify for a cash payment from this fund,” said Attorney General Schneider. “One of the key provisions of the Mortgage Settlement is this direct payment and I encourage eligible borrowers to take advantage of this remedy.”
If you believe you are eligible for relief and have not received a claim form, contact the National Mortgage Settlement Administrator at 1-866-430-8358. To file a claim online, go to http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com
The National Mortgage Settlement negotiated by the state Attorneys General and the federal government and announced in February 2012 impacts borrowers serviced by the following major lenders: • Ally/GMAC • Bank of America • Citi • JPMorgan Chase • Wells Fargo
In addition to the fund for cash payments to eligible borrowers, the state received a direct payment of $6.9 million for continued funding of state foreclosure prevention programs, legal assistance to homeowners in foreclosure, and compensation to the state’s general fund to offset some of the cumulative impact to safety net services across the state.
Under the terms of the settlement, the five servicers subject to the agreement must provide an additional $20 million to Maine consumers for loan modification relief. Complete information on the number of loan modifications that have been offered and approved, the number of first and second mortgage liens that have been forgiven, the number of short sales with the deficiency balance forgiven, the number of transition payments made and the number of mortgages refinanced pursuant to the settlement can be found at http://www.mortgageoversight.com.
