NAACP Kicks-Off Multi-City "Help & Hope For Homeowners" Tour In Chicago To Help Borrowers Improve Their Mortgage Situation

CHICAGO, May 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Illinois State Conference NAACP announced the first in a series of local homeowner outreach events scheduled in partnership with Ocwen Financial Corporation (NYSE: OCN), a leading financial services holding company. The Help & Hope for Homeowners event, scheduled for Saturday, May 16, will provide Illinois homeowners with opportunities to learn about loan modification programs, including principal reduction, which can help make their homes more affordable.

The event will bring Ocwen customers together with United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) approved financial counselors and Ocwen Home Retention Agents, who can explore with homeowners potential loan modification options.

For the NAACP, the partnership with Ocwen is a natural fit. Foreclosures have been, and continue to be, an epidemic in communities of color since the housing crash of 2008.  It's a troubling reality that African Americans and other underserved groups continue to experience disproportionately high levels of unemployment, poverty, and foreclosures.

To help alleviate this situation, the NAACP is committed to improving relationships between financial institutions and people of color and other historically disadvantaged borrowers. The NAACP has established partnerships with reputable organizations nationwide, including Ocwen Loan Servicing, to provide financial information and education in communities across America.

On Saturday, May 16, Ocwen homeowners in Illinois are encouraged to come to the Help & Hope for Homeowners event at Whitney M. Young High School (211 S. Laflin Street, Chicago, IL 60607) where housing counselors and Ocwen Home Retention Agents will be available to meet with homeowners anytime between 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. to learn about loan modification programs, including principal reductions, that can help make their homes more affordable.

To get the most out of the meetings with the counselors and home retention agents, homeowners are asked to bring:

• Photo ID (Required)
• Two most recent pay stubs, profit & loss statements, and/or bonus or commission records
• Two most recent bank statements
• Most recent tax return
• Latest utility bill
• A list of their current expenses (or a budget or copies of their bills)
• Documents related to other mortgages, HOA dues, property taxes, and/or homeowner insurance

Additional events will be held over the coming months in Florida, Maryland, and New York where the effects of the 2008 housing crisis are still being felt.

For more information, or to jumpstart the process before the event, homeowners are encouraged to call the NAACP-dedicated hotline at (855) 459-2514.

About Illinois State Conference NAACP

For more than a century the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has worked to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination. Inspired by the force and commitment of The Call of 1909, which denounced the growing oppression of people of color and mobilized thousands to work to bring this discrimination to an end, the NAACP seeks to establish a strategic direction as it embarks on developing The New Call for the 21st Century. In the fall of 2011, the NAACP launched a process to develop its strategic direction and plan, creating a powerful vision for the future, and setting organizational goals that would focus its work for the 21st Century.

SOURCE NAACP

Related Links

http://illinoisnaacp.org/naacp/ocwen.html