State offers foreclosure help in Copiague

Long Island homeowners in foreclosure or at risk of foreclosure can seek assistance this week in Copiague, the state Department of Financial Services has announced.

The department’s mortgage foreclosure prevention specialists will staff a mobile command center at the Copiague Memorial Public Library, 50 Deauville Blvd. on Friday, Aug. 10, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The specialists will assess where homeowners are in the pre-foreclosure or foreclosure process, and provide information about loan modification programs and ways to file complaints about abusive practices by lenders and mortgage services. Homeowners should bring any relevant documents, such as records of mortgage payments or letters from lenders or mortgage servicers.

“The objective is to provide direct help to homeowners and get the word out to others that it’s important to ask for help as quickly as possible,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a news release. “The longer a homeowner waits, the harder it may be to save a home.”

Homeowners should beware of mortgage rescue scams by private businesses, which may improperly demand upfront fees, collect homeowners’ mortgage payments or ask them to sign over their home’s deed, according to the state Department of Financial Services.

Homeowners may file complaints using the department’s website. For more information, call the department’s foreclosure hotline at 800-269-0990 or 518-457-1654 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.