Tampa, Fl (September 28, 2009) - The Housing & Education Alliance was the local partner at a foreclosure workshop presented in partnership with HOPE NOW, NeighborWorks, Alliance for Stabilizing our Communities, National Council of La Raza, National Urban League , National CAPCD and Bank of America. HOPE NOW is an alliance of non-profit counselors, mortgage servicers, investors, and other market participants that works aggressively to prevent foreclosures and keep homeowners in their homes. Most recently, HOPE NOW partnered with the Obama Administration and Neighborworks® America to hold free foreclosure prevention workshops throughout the country and presented a workshop in Tampa, Florida in September 2009.

The event provided almost 1,200 homeowners an opportunity to meet face-to-face with their mortgage lenders and local housing counselors from HUD-approved organizations in order to look for solutions to their mortgage issues. Sylvia Alvarez, Executive Director, of the Housing and Education Alliance in Tampa, added,  "We were very happy that HOPE NOW brought so many resources to the Tampa Bay area that were not available to us prior to this event. Perfect examples of a success story are two clients that our agency, the Housing & Education Alliance, had been working with for over 18 months and we were at a dead end with their servicers. We are now happy to report that there appears to be a resolution for both of these homeowners. We attribute the success of these outcomes to the direct involvement of HOPE NOW, the US Treasury Department, NeighborWorks, National Council of La Raza, and the rest of our partners." Eric Selk , Outreach Director for HOPE NOW, said “We are thrilled that we had an excellent turnout of homeowners in Tampa. Our events provide a unique opportunity for distressed homeowners to meet face to face with their lender or a housing counselor. In most cases, even if a solution isn’t reached on-site, at least homeowners are leaving with a clearer understanding of their mortgage picture and are often put on the path to a solution.”

At-risk homeowners are encouraged to attend local outreach events, reach out to a local housing counselor from a HUD-certified organization, or contact the Homeownership Preservation Foundation’s Homeowner’s HOPE™ Hotline at 888-995-HOPE.

"There is still much more to do. If servicers could raise their level of servic,  develop a standardized process for use industry wide, and be more efficient, the effect would result in a positive impact on the foreclosure crisis," added Alvarez.

Thus far in 2009, the industry has assisted more than 1.5 million borrowers with workout solutions. Since March 2008, over 41,000 families have been assisted via HOPE NOW’s face to face outreach events. HOPE NOW is the industry-created alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, counselors, and other mortgage market participants that has developed and is implementing a coordinated plan to help as many homeowners as possible prevent foreclosure and stay in their homes. For more information go to www.HopeNow.com or call the free Homeowner’s HOPE™ Hotline at (888) 995-HOPE.