Countrywide Will Restructure Home Loans

Countrywide Financial, the largest home loan company in the U.S., announced a plan to help homeowners restructure as much as $16 billion in mortgages, in an effort to stem the tide of loan defaults and home foreclosures. The company states that "dedicated teams of Countrywide specialists will contact customers who are current in their payments and approaching a rate reset to ascertain the borrowers circumstances and advise them about refinance and home preservation options." According to the New York Times, "the effort by Countrywide follows weeks of intense criticism from advocacy organizations contending that the company had not moved quickly to help its borrowers escape risky, high-cost loans made before the mortgage crisis took hold this year."

• Countrywide Press Release
• New York Times: Countrywide to Help Restructure Loans
• State-Specific Foreclosure Information (FindLaw)
• Real Estate Center: Foreclosure (FindLaw)