Idaho Steps Up Measures to Combat Epidemic on Foreclosures
November 25th, 2008When the Pew Center placed Idaho as one of the inactive states taking action against foreclosures, state officials responded by outlining a plan of action derived from daily meetings with organizations, industry leaders and government agencies.
According to the Pew Center report, Idaho is predicted to have 1 out of 39 homeowners facing foreclosures within a two-year period. The national tally is predicted to be 1 out of 33 homeowners. However, the Mortgage Banker’s Association ranks Idaho at No.41 among the states in terms of foreclosures, and describes Idaho to be performing well in dealing with the foreclosure problem. This can be seen by the state’s unemployment rate which is lower than the national standard.
The Idaho Department of Finance has begun to mobilize concrete programs in a bid to stem the flow of foreclosure properties. First and foremost is to educate its residents on financial literacy by providing information through the State’s official website and offering online financial counseling through the Idaho Housing and Finance Association (IHFA) website. Part of this information drive is providing the public with useful resources on how to avoid foreclosures with established policies and guidelines.
With an increase of foreclosure cases nationwide, unscrupulous perpetrators tries to cash in with this situation by fiendishly devising rescue scams to drain already troubled people with their money. To protect its constituents against such scams, Idaho passed a Consumer Foreclosure Protection Act and worked with other government agencies to work on this serious issue.
Other actions performed by the Finance Department is the formation of the governor’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program steering committee, and meeting regularly with government and professional agencies in formulating plans and programs in dealing with this crisis. The department is also taking actions to preempt high-cost lending by establishing lending standards on subprime mortgage lending. Taking initiative in a nationwide campaign for mortgage licensing reforms, the department also supports the CSBS (Conference of State Bank Supervisors) and SAFE (Secure & Fair Enforcement) Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008.
