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SALT LAKE CITY — As they have done in previous years, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have both announced a two-week moratorium on evictions over the Christmas and New Year's holiday. The mortgage giants will suspend evictions of foreclosed single family and two to four unit properties from Dec. 18, 2013, through and including Jan. 3, 2014.
Although legal and administrative proceedings on foreclosure actions may continue through the courts, families living in foreclosed properties will be allowed to remain in the homes until after the holidays.
“The holiday season is meant for quality time with family and we want to relieve anyone of the anxiety of leaving their home during this season,” Terry Edwards, chief operating officer for Fannie Mae, said in a prepared release. “We encourage any homeowner who is having difficulty making their mortgage payment to reach out for help right away. Fannie Mae will continue to help borrowers avoid foreclosure whenever possible.”
The holiday season is meant for quality time with family and we want to relieve anyone of the anxiety of leaving their home during this season.
–- Terry Edwards, chief operating officer for Fannie Mae
The eviction and foreclosure lockout suspensions have become a yearly tradition for the two government-sponsored entities since the real estate bust left hundreds of thousands of homeowners facing the loss of a home during the Christmas holidays.
This year, Fannie Mae made it easier for a delinquent borrower to stay in his or her home when it introduced the Streamlined Modification, which is available once someone experiences a hardship that causes them to be 90 days late with their mortgage payment.
Homeowners with Fannie Mae-owned loans may visit www.knowyouroptions.com or call Fannie Mae's Mortgage Help Center at 866-442-8575 for information and resources on foreclosure prevention options.
To find out if Fannie Mae owns your loan, visit www.knowyouroptions.com/loanlookup.
“While I applaud the delay in evictions, the two-week suspension does little to address continuing problems in the foreclosure process itself,” said Carlos Reyes, a nationally known foreclosure defense attorney from Fort Lauderdale, Fla. “All a moratorium does is delay the inevitable.” Bill Lewis is principal of William E. Lewis Jr. & Associates, a solutions-based professional consulting firm specializing in individual, business or governmental entities.
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