NEW YORK – Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced on MOnday the grantees of the Homeowner Protection Program, his office’s commitment of $60 million over three years to fund housing counseling and legal services for struggling New York homeowners. The announcement covers the first year of program funding at $20 million to aid struggling homeowners across the state who are fighting to avoid foreclosure and remain in their homes. Throughout New York State, 35 legal services organizations and 59 housing counseling agencies will receive over $16.1 million to provide free foreclosure prevention services. An additional $3.9 million has been allocated for training, technical assistance, and other support services to assist homeowners in foreclosure.

The funds awarded are the result of a competitive Request For Applications process and represent a portion of the millions of dollars that New York received as a result of the National Mortgage Servicing Settlement that was announced in February between the five largest mortgage servicing banks, 49 states, and the federal government over foreclosure abuses.

According to data collected by the New York Federal Reserve, there are more than 140,000 mortgages across the state that are seriously delinquent, defined as in foreclosure or more than 90 days in arrears. Some of the hardest hit communities are on Long Island, in Brooklyn and Queens in New York City, and in the Hudson Valley.

The Homeowner Protection Program funding will benefit homeowners at risk of foreclosure across New York State. Direct service providers will use the announced funds to assist homeowners in navigating the long and often complicated process of applying for loan modifications and seeking other foreclosure prevention alternatives. In recent years almost half of homeowners facing foreclosure have been forced to navigate the process without an attorney and 63 percent of New Yorkers are unrepresented at settlement conferences. Many also lack access to housing counselors.