New ads point NY homeowners to free foreclosure help

Struggling homeowners who face foreclosure should reach out for free legal assistance and counseling, State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman urged Thursday. The message is part of an advertising campaign Schneiderman announced to highlight the services available to people in danger of losing their homes.

Schneiderman launched the statewide $60 million Homeowners Protection Plan last year using funds from a $25 billion national settlement with mortgage banks.

“Providing a struggling family with legal counseling to navigate the foreclosure process can mean the difference between that family keeping their home or being displaced,” Schneiderman said in a news release. The program can empower homeowners to assert their legal rights, he said.

Roughly 7,400 homeowners have used the services over the past five months and more than a third of those were able to get approval for loan modifications which avoid foreclosure, the Attorney General’s office said.

More information about the program is available by calling 855-HOME-456 or on the Internet at AGHomeHelp.com