The main housing rescue programme of the Obama administration showed more signs of stabilisation in December, as the number of people who received permanent modifications during the month exceeded the number of those who exited the programme.
A total of 30,030 homeowners received permanent loan modifications in December, under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), slightly higher than the 29,972 that received permanent modifications in the previous month, said the Treasury Department.
The department also said that 18,448 borrowers were cut from both trial and permanent modifications in December, almost the same level as in the previous month.
For much of 2010, the number of dropouts had exceeded new permanent modifications due to the announcement of more stringent documentation requirements.
A total of 792,529 borrowers had been dropped from the programme until December, or around 54 percent of the 1.47 million modifications that had started in 2009.
About 521,630 borrowers had received a permanent modification as of end December, compared to around 505,000 and 483,000 as of end November and October respectively.
However, this fell short of the government’s initial goals of helping three to four million owners. Under the stricter guidelines announced in 2010, around 1.42 million borrowers qualified for the programme.