As all of our thoughts go out to the northeast and those cities that have suffered so much devastation with Hurricane Sandy, the government is offering some help with homeowners that used Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae for their mortgages.
Homeowners in communities declared as Disaster Areas by President Obama due to the hurricane and have Freddie Mac mortgages will be eligible for a "payment holiday" for up to a year as well as having late fees and penalties waived by the loan programs or mortgage companies that used them to service the mortgage.
While the options are available, they will be determined on a case-by-case basis and probably closely monitored. Fannie Mae mortgages can be granted forbearance of payments and fees for 90 day increments, with extra time granted, based on the damages and hardship on the borrower.
Locations that were declared as major Disaster Areas with Hurricane Sandy include New York, New Jersey, Connecticutt, New Hampshire, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Maryland. Information can be found on this FEMA Disaster Page - http://www.fema.gov/disasters
Locations that were declared as major Disaster Areas with Hurricane Sandy include New York, New Jersey, Connecticutt, New Hampshire, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Maryland. Information can be found on this FEMA Disaster Page - http://www.fema.gov/disasters
This is good news for new and established homeowners that are in for weeks of cleanup and expenses.
This kind of help is also a lifesaver to all those that have homes for sale and must repair the properties to a sellable condition after any kind of major disaster. Home sales tend to slow or stall in these areas, adding to the hardship and monetary loss to the cities and the residents in them. It has been estimated the this hurricane/winter storm may affect as many as 284,000 homes and produce losses to nearly $90 billion dollars.
South Carolina was fortunate to have no damage from the storm, but homes and condos for sale in Myrtle Beach may indirectly be affected as many of our buyers are retirees and investors from the northeast where the devastation was so paralyzing. These government aid programs will help the entire country to recover a little faster, perhaps.
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