New Jersey Legislators Step Up Efforts to Protect Homeowners from Foreclosure
In an attempt to minimize losses from the financial meltdown, the government was willing to help out these troubled investment firms in the form of a $700 billion bailout plan. Despite the huge amount, many analysts and financial experts are not sure if the amount would be enough to also provide assistance to the millions of homeowners who will be hit by the financial crisis. For this reason, New Jersey Legislature is considering its own set of bills that will further protect homeowners from foreclosure.
Among the many anti-foreclosure proposals circulating the New Jersey legislature includes the waiving the fees for realty transfer that were supposed to be paid by non-profit groups working with the banks and helping distressed homeowners stay in their homes.
Another proposal hopes to establish a fund amounting to $30 billion that will be used for the payment of counseling services, emergency loans and foreclosure-buying efforts exerted by non-profit groups. There is also a $7 million fund that will be given to the state’s Legal Services in order for them to provide bankruptcy and foreclosure assistance and counseling to the financially-challenged.
Last October 6, the Assembly Budget Committee approved the New Jersey Home Ownership Preservation Act in which mortgage servicers and lenders will be charged $2000 for every foreclosure filing. The said fee will not be billed to the distressed homeowner. Aside from this, troubled borrowers are also given six months to work out their mortgage problems with their lenders.
Across the state, about 50,000 homes are foreclosed each year for the last couple of years, clearly showing that the state is greatly-affected by the enduring foreclosure crisis.
In addition to helping these troubled borrowers, the state also wanted to improve the local business climate as well as jump-start the economy in order to generate more jobs and create more investment opportunities.
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