The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) has been extended again and will no longer expire on the original date of December 31 of 2012. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has announced the extension of the program designed for homeowners that have been unable to refinance due to their underwater mortgages.
The extension was announced to continue the damage control and efforts to reduce losses for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government sponsored entities that were bailed out following the economic collapse.
What is the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP)
HARP was created through an announcement from the Obama Administration near the end of the year in 2009. The programs allows homeowners with mortgages owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to refinance to lower interest rates even if they owe more than their home is worth. The program supports high loan-to-value (LTV) ratios and requires limited documentation for homeowner to qualify. Many times an appraisal is not required for a HARP refinance.
When does the Home Affordable Refinance Program expire?
Following the announcement form the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) the HARP program will now expire on December 31st, 2015. The two year extension of the Home Affordable Refinance Programs is expected to allow millions more homeowners to reduce their mortgage payments to the current historically low rates. Since the program’s inception in 2009, HARP refinancing haw allow over 2 million borrowers to drop their rate and terms.
“More than 2 million homeowners have refinanced through HARP, proving it a useful tool for reducing risk,” said FHFA Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco. “We are extending the program so more underwater borrowers can benefit from lower interest rates.”
Due to the overwhelming success of the HARP program, HARP 2.0 was announced removing LTV requirements and making qualifying easier. Since HARP 2.0 announcement in the fall of 2011, more banks and lenders have expanded their guidelines and allowed HARP refinancing for their current loans.
Apply for the HARP refinance program
Contact the experts and knowledgeable mortgage officers at Riverbank Finance today to check out the latest mortgage rates and have your questions answered about HARP today.
