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by Catherine Reagor of The Arizona Republic - A year and a half after it began, the federal government’s loan-modification program is helping fewer homeowners facing foreclosure than hoped.
Of the Phoenix-area borrowers who sought lower monthly payments through the Home Affordable Mortgage Program in April, more than half, about 10,000, left the program by the end of July without having had their payments permanently lowered. April is the first month for which complete data is available.
Some of those borrowers did receive help from other programs, including federal incentives for short sales, in which lenders agree to let owners sell their homes for less than they owe, avoiding foreclosure. But many other homeowners were denied permanent modifications after making several months of “trial” payments and have lost their homes to foreclosure or may soon.
