Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development releaseda new monthly scorecardon the Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP — the Obama administration’s signature effort to keep underwater and distressed homeowners in their homes. The report is, well, not great. And the accompanying press release is short of triumphant. “The housing market is performing better than the predictions made over a year ago,” Raphael Bostic, a HUD assistant secretary, says in the release. “We’re absolutely not claiming victory, but due to the Obama administration’s efforts, improved home affordability is continuing to provide opportunities for prospective, qualified homebuyers.”
In June, the program gained 38,700 new participants and granted 51,025 homeowners permanent mortgage modifications. It also kicked 91,100 participants out. The program generally drops participants if they cannot keep up with payments, or if they do not complete the requisite paperwork or meet certain requirements. All in all, the program has 364,100 homeowners still participating, has helped 389,200 get permanent mortgage modifications and has dropped 520,800 participants.