In February 2010, Florida and four other states received money from the federal Troubled Assets Relief Program. Those fund were designed to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. Until now, all four of the other states instituted programs to distribute that money to struggling homeowners. This month, Florida will become the last of the five to do so.
The Florida Housing Finance Corporation recently announced that applications for the Hardest Hite program will be accepted beginning on April 18. Hardest Hit will provide money for unemployed or underemployed homeowners who are facing foreclosure because they can no longer keep up with their mortgage payments.
With an unemployment rate of more than 11 percent, Florida is home to many struggling homeowners. Good people who lost their jobs have been forced to miss mortgage payments and are now facing foreclosure. The Hardest Hit funds would provide funds to pay the mortgage so that homeowners can focus on obtaining employment.
In order to qualify for the program, homeowners will need to meet many criteria. If they qualify, they could receive help in one of two forms:
The homeowner’s mortgage payments could be made for six months (up to $12,000).
The homeowner could be given up to $6,000 to bring the loan current.
With many of the state’s residential properties already facing foreclosure, this program could help many people stay in their homes. In fact, the Florida Housing Finance Corporation has suggested that Hardest Hit could help up to 40,000 homeowners in the state.
Source: The Palm Beach Post, “Florida sets April 18 start date to apply for share of $1 billion in mortgage help,” Kimberly Miller, 5 April 2011
