The Obama administration has extended several mortgage bail - out
programs for distressed homeowners like the Home Affordable Refinance Program, but very few borrowers were able to qualify for this relief measure that enabled homeowners that had mortgages owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac the ability to refinance their under - water loans up to 125 % loan to value.
Together with months of interest rates at record lows, some of the other factors that push the refinancing boom include the competitive lending market and modifications in a few federal refinancing programs
intended for distressed homeowners.
Becoming a more and more popular
option for distressed homeowners, this process is called a «short sale», which occurs when a lender agrees to write off the portion of a mortgage that is higher than the value of a home.
Bank of America President and Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan also announced changes to Bank of America Home Loans and Insurance that will continue the company's strong momentum in extending home mortgage credit while improving its leading mortgage modification
programs for distressed homeowners and resolving legacy mortgage issues.