NJ Takes Heat for Screwing Homeowners: Senators Robert Menendez and Frank R. Lautenberg are among the latest to criticize New Jersey’s administration of doing a lousy job helping homeowners. According to an article in NJ Today, the two senators wrote a letter blasting the NJ administration for essentially dragging their heals when it comes to providing help to homeowners.

The letter reads:

“We are disappointed that despite the fact that you have had two years to implement this program and we have sent multiple letters requesting quick action, New Jersey is still dead last in the nation in implementing this program,” the Senators wrote. “In a recent study, New Jersey was found to have the second highest percentage of foreclosure inventory in the United States at 5.7%, behind only Florida. Given that fact, it is unconscionable that approximately $270 million in federal funds has been sitting unspent for two years and that New Jersey is last in the nation among the states in distributing that money.”

In the letter they call for three specific actions:

• Speed up hiring and action on applications or give the federal funds to non-profit organizations that have the ability deliver the urgent help that New Jersey homeowners need.
• Make immediately available on their website the new criteria for temporary payment help. The state finally agreed to relax criteria, which, according to an ABC news report, have been so restrictive that nearly 2 out of 3 applications were rejected. Although the new criteria would enable more homeowners to be accepted, the state has not made that available to the public on the program website.
• Review all rejected applicants against new eligibility criteria and immediately accept those into the program who would now meet those criteria.

Read the entire article here.

Massachusetts Homeowners eligible for cash: Hidden away, not easy to find, and buried on obscure websites you’ll find the announcement that “The state attorney general's office has announced that claim forms are being sent to Massachusetts residents who lost their homes to foreclosure and who may be eligible for payment under the $25 billion national mortgage settlement.”

Full Story here.

Washington state homeowners are also eligible: The Seattle PI reports, “The settlement, which took effect in April, about $1.5 billion in payments for 2 million borrowers nationwide who lost their homes to foreclosure. Payment amounts will depend on the total number of borrowers who decide to participate.”

They also do a little better with the information and provide actual phone numbers and addresses:

Free claim form assistance available

The claim form is one-page. Borrowers who have questions or need help filing the form can contact the settlement administrator at 866-430-8358 Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT, or send questions by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Payment won’t stop other legal claims

Eligible borrowers don’t need to prove financial harm to receive a payment, nor do they give up their rights to pursue a lawsuit against their mortgage servicer or to participate in the Independent Foreclosure Review Process being conducted by federal bank regulators, the agency said in a statement. More information about that program is available at www.independentforeclosurereview.com.

Eligible borrowers may receive a payment from this settlement even if they participate in another foreclosure claims process. However, any payment received may reduce payments borrowers may be eligible to receive in any other foreclosure claim process or legal proceeding.

Eligible borrowers not notified should contact settlement administrator

Borrowers who think they may qualify but didn’t receive a notice because they’ve moved should contact the settlement administrator directly.

Full story in the Seattle PI