RI to get $172M in housing relief

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - A major mortgage foreclosure settlement across the country has left the state of Rhode Island with millions of dollars in relief aid.

On Thursday, R.I. Attorney General Peter Kilmartin announced that the state was given $175-million in relief as a way to help struggling homeowners across the nation to avoid future foreclosures.

The relief funds were part of a $25-billion settlement awarded to the entire country and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder made that announcement in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.

Rhode Island's $172-million share of the settlement is broken down in four ways:

• Rhode Island borrowers will receive an estimated $152 .6 million in benefits from loan term modifications, including principal reduction and other relief.
• Rhode Island borrowers who lost their home to foreclosure from January 1, 2008 through December 31, 2011 and suffered servicing abuse would qualify for $3.1 million in cash payments to borrowers.
• The value of refinanced loans to Rhode Island’s underwater borrowers would be an estimated $7.3 million.
• The state will receive a direct payment of $8.9 million to help fund consumer protection and state foreclosure protection efforts.

“This agreement provides much needed relief to Rhode Island borrowers, and also puts a stop to many of the bad behaviors that contributed to the mortgage mess in our state and across the country,” Kilmartin said.

Kilmartin also urged local borrowers to get in touch with their mortgage servicers for specific information on their loans and other potential loan programs in the state.

The state Attorney General went on to assure Rhode Island residents he intended to "start utilizing the relief we have obtained to provide maximum benefits" for the state.

On the national level, all but one of the 50 states agreed to the landmark settlement. As a result of its holdout, Oklahoma won't receive any money.

As part of the agreement, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial all will reduce loans for nearly 1 million households and provide checks of $2,000 to about 750,000 Americans who were improperly foreclosed upon.