California Governor Gavin Newsom has announced commitments from five major financial institutions that will provide mortgage relief to property owners affected by the fires in the Los Angeles area.
Newsom’s office said Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and US Bank will offer affected homeowners a 90-day forbearance on their mortgage payments without reporting the payments to credit reporting agencies.
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“After so much trauma, we hope this deal will provide some relief to thousands of survivors. This financial protection will allow residents to focus on meeting their immediate needs rather than worrying about paying their mortgage bills,” Newsom said.
Assistance that the financial institutions will provide to their qualified borrowers:
- Mortgage payment term of 90 days
- Waiver of mortgage-related costs accrued during the forbearance period
- Payment option plans without immediate repayment of unpaid amounts
- Possibility for additional lighting
- Protection against new evictions or evictions for at least 60 days
- The financial institutions will not report late payments of forbearance amounts to credit agencies
The waiver will be available to qualified customers of the establishments who reside in Los Angeles County in the following zip codes: 90019, 90041, 90049, 90066, 90265, 90272, 90290, 90402, 91001, 91104, 91106, 91107 or 93536.
The Ministry of Financial Protection and Innovation will also assess state-chartered financial institutions in the coming days to secure additional liabilities.
Borrowers should contact their mortgage servicer to receive assistance.