Foreclosure Counseling Certication

At Park Avenue Realty in Plainfield we offer free foreclosure counseling for homeowners at risk of losing their homes. We offer these services via a non-profit called NID Counseling Agency. I would highly recommend Realtors to get certified to be able to offer these alternative services to their customer. Sometimes we cannot always just advise our clients to short sale their property. Homeowners can explore other choices & see if they qualify for a loan modification from their lender before making any drastic decisions. Through NID, we assist homeowners in this difficult process & facilitate negotiating a work-out option with their lender.

I am posting a Neighborworks artice below & the link where you can locate it. Neighborworks offers foreclosure counseling certification training. If you are already affiliated with a non-profit you can possibly qualify for a scholarship to pay for your certification. The scholarships are very easy to obtain.

Explore your option as a Realtor in finding ways to expand your services to your clientelle.

http://www.nw.org/network/training/homeownership/ForeclosureTraining2.asp

NEWS RELEASE

January 11, 2011

Contact:
Doug Robinson, 202-220-2360, drobinson@nw.org

NeighborWorks Receives More Than $7 Million
in Latest Round of HUD Counseling and Training Grants
Receives Largest Training Award

WASHINGTON – NeighborWorks America and members of the NeighborWorks network were recently awarded more than $7 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as part of the department’s grants to support housing counseling and housing counselor training.

Specifically, the NeighborWorks Center for Homeownership Education and Counseling (NCHEC) was awarded
$3.05 million to continue its work in promoting counseling standards and building the skill capacity of nonprofit housing organizations along with administering the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program. NeighborWorks America is the largest trainer and certifier of community development and housing professionals.

NeighborWorks America also was awarded $1.58 million for comprehensive housing counseling. This counseling helps to create homeowners who are less likely to experience mortgage default. Counseling provides consumers with high-quality information about mortgage products and budgeting, which increases the sustainability of affordable homeownership. These funds will be used to support the homeownership counseling activity of members of the NeighborWorks network.

In addition, NeighborWorks America received $300,000 for HECM counseling, a growing part of the national housing counseling framework designed to help senior citizens make informed mortgage choices.

Finally, $2.3 million was awarded to more than 60 NeighborWorks network organizations around the U.S. committed to providing affordable homeownership solutions to low- and moderate-income families.

“NeighborWorks is committed to providing the best and most comprehensive housing counseling services available,” said Eileen Fitzgerald, acting CEO for NeighborWorks America. “Counselors trained to high standards who deliver important, relevant and timely information about housing to consumers are critical to building strong communities. We’re excited that HUD has recognized the scale and capacity of NeighborWorks America and the NeighborWorks network to deliver these necessary services to communities all across America.”

About NeighborWorks America
NeighborWorks America creates opportunities for people to improve their lives and strengthen their communities by providing access to homeownership and to safe and affordable rental housing. Since 1991, we have assisted nearly 1.2 million low- to moderate-income families with their housing needs. Much of our success is achieved through our support of the NeighborWorks network ― more than 230 community development organizations working in more than 4,400 urban, suburban and rural communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In the last five years, NeighborWorks organizations have generated more than $15 billion in reinvestment in these communities. NeighborWorks America is the nation’s leading trainer of community development and affordable housing professionals.