Central Florida will receive nearly $48 million in federal funds to assist foreclosure-plagued neighborhoods, officials announced Thursday.

According to officials with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the money is part of a $1 billion "neighborhood stabilization program." The Obama administration began the program to help local housing authorities across the county buy and renovate abandoned properties. The money will also be used to offer assistance with down payments and closing costs to low-and moderate-income homebuyers.

Florida, which has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country, will receive about $208 million, which is the largest amount of any state. California will receive the second-largest portion, $149 million.

"To us, it's an easy investment," said HUD Deputy Secretary Ron Sims. "It means someone will wake up and have a job to go to. … A community will have a new neighbor. And a new family will live here."

If you need a legal professional to help you make sure your mortgage modification is a reliable operation to improve your financial situation, contact a Maryland mortgage modification lawyer of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C., by calling 443-546-4608 today.

A new report estimates 11 million U.S. homeowners owed more on their mortgages than their homes were worth at the end of June.

According to a report from data aggregator CoreLogic, the number of these "underwater" homes actually declined by about 200,000 from an estimated 11.2 million in March. For those who owe more than their homes are worth, about 23 percent of all mortgage holders, the bad news is that the CoreLogic report demonstrates a strong correlation between home-price appreciation and homeowner equity.

In the first six months of 2010, homeowners with little or no equity in their properties say their home's value fall by more than one percent. For homeowners underwater by 50 percent or more, property values fell by 2 percent, according to the report.

If you need a legal professional to help with your mortgage modification, please contact a Maryland mortgage modification attorney of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C., by calling 443-546-4608 today.

Almost half of all homeowners seeking help from the Obama administrations effort to help those at risk of foreclosure have left the program.

According to a new report from the Treasure Department, approximately 630,000 people who tried to get their mortgages modified through the program were cut loose in July. That is about 48 percent of the 1.3 million homeowners who had enrolled in the program since March 2009, up from 40 percent in June.

The report suggests foreclosures could continue to rise in the second half of the year and further weaken the already ailing housing market.

The Maryland foreclosure defense attorneys of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C. can examine your loan to determine whether the lender violated TILA or other laws. If any violations come to light, we may be able to have the foreclosure proceedings against you dismissed. In some cases, you may even be entitled to obtain damages from the bank.

If you or someone you know is facing foreclosure, contact the Maryland foreclosure defense lawyers of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C. at 443-546-4608 to learn more about your rights.

President Obama announced Wednesday that it would extend an additional $3 billion to support foreclosure-prevention programs, assisting unemployed homeowners facing foreclosure.

Consumer-lending and housing advocates applauded the administrations expansion of housing aid to the unemployed. "The biggest single cause of foreclosure today is loss of income or employment-related issues," said Barry Zigas, director of housing policy for the Consumer Federation of America.

The new programs will reach beyond the administration's loan-modification program, which was designed to counter the subprime crisis and offers little assistance to the unemployed. The new program extends a no-interest loan of up to $50,000 to assist homeowners with mortgage payments until they become financially stable.

If you need a legal professional to help you make sure your mortgage modification is a reliable operation to improve your financial situation, contact a Maryland mortgage modification attorney of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C., by calling 443-546-4608 today.

Regulators have shut down a bank in Maryland Friday, marking the 87th federally insured bank failure this year.

According to officials with The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., it was appointed receiver of the Baltimore-based Bay National Bank. The bank had $282.2 million in assets and $276.1 million in deposits as of March 31. The FDIC says the bank's deposits will be assumed by Bay Bank, FSB, which is based in Lutherville, Maryland.

The pace of bank failures this year far surpasses that of 2009. Bay National's failure is the 87th closure nationwide; last year regulators had closed 45 banks by this time.

If you need a legal professional to help you make sure your mortgage modification is a reliable operation to improve your financial situation, contact a Maryland mortgage modification lawyer of Chaifetz & Coyle, P.C., by calling 443-546-4608 today.