Bank of America Reports 20,000 Customers Have Received or Are in Final Steps for Completed HAMP Modifications

CALABASAS, Calif., Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Bank of America today pointed to several indications of strong momentum in its efforts to help customers advance from trial modifications to completed modifications under the federal government's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). The program is designed to help financially distressed homeowners obtain a long-term, affordable mortgage payment.

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As the number of customers successfully completing trial modification requirements grows and special efforts to encourage and help customers return documentation required under the government program have begun taking effect, Bank of America has finished the processing and underwriting of more than 20,000 files, placing those homeowners on the final steps to obtaining a completed modification.

• More than 12,000 of these customers have been sent their final modified loan documents under HAMP to be signed and returned to Bank of America.
• Nearly 3,200 of them have signed and returned the final loan modification documents and now have a completed Home Affordable modification, as the bank has reported to the Treasury Department for its monthly progress report due out on Friday.

"We applaud the government's decision to extend the time allowed for homeowners to provide the documentation required to convert from a trial to a completed modification, which has allowed us to continue to help our customers achieve a long-term mortgage solution," said Jack Schakett, credit loss mitigation strategies executive for Bank of America Home Loans. "As a result of the extensions, none of the Bank of America customers who successfully completed a trial payment plan has been eliminated from the program for failing to meet a government deadline for documents. Mortgage servicers have been able to significantly increase the number of modifications moving toward completion, and we expect the rate of conversions to continue rising."

Adding to that momentum, Bank of America has become the first mortgage servicer to surpass 200,000 customers entering HAMP trial modifications. The bank started more than 34,000 new trial modifications in December alone.

"We will continue our extraordinary efforts begun over the past two months -- through phone, mail and even door-to-door outreach -- to encourage and help the next wave of customers proceeding through the trial payment period meet the requirements for a final HAMP modification," said Schakett. "Just as Bank of America now leads the industry in helping customers enter trial modifications, we are confident with the momentum we now have that we will become the industry leader in assisting customers with completed modifications, as well."

Bank of America continues to focus on HAMP as the centerpiece of its efforts to help financially troubled homeowners avoid foreclosure, while also offering its own programs to help customers who do not qualify under HAMP guidelines. Through HAMP and non-government programs in 2009, the bank completed over a quarter of a million modifications, in addition to starting about 200,000 HAMP trial modifications, providing homeownership retention opportunities to more than 450,000 customers during the year.

Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 53 million consumer and small business relationships with 6,000 retail banking offices, more than 18,000 ATMs and award-winning online banking with more than 29 million active users. Bank of America is among the world's leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to more than 4 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients in more than 150 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

www.bankofamerica.com

SOURCE Bank of America