Fannie Mae has unrolled a new interactive website designed to educate and assist homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage payments.  The site, KnowYourOptions.com, outlines the choices available to homeowners and provides guidance on how they can contact and work with a mortgage company to find solutions.

Persons working in the area of foreclosure prevention often find it difficult to even get in touch with delinquent borrowers.  At a conference on foreclosure policy sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago late last year, Sendhil Mullainathan of Harvard University said that counseling and modification programs must be designed to reflect the knowledge that borrowers tend to avoid contact with their lenders and servicers and recommended that policy efforts focus on finding and getting services to these homeowners before the banks can foreclose. 

Whether the creators of the Fannie Mae website attended the conference or not, their site show an intent to be an unthreatening, even a warm and fuzzy place to obtain information and assistance in an easy-to-understand format and, probably most important, anonymously.

Key features of the website, which can be accessed in either English or Spanish, include:

• Interactive Options Finder to help homeowners identify options that might be right for their situation;
• Calculators to help borrowers understand how many of the options work, including refinance, repayment, forbearance, and modification;
• Videos featuring real homeowners discussing how they received help and housing counselors providing advice;
• A virtual assistant to walk homeowners through key areas of the site; and
• Next steps and helpful forms, including a financial checklist and contact log to help borrowers be prepared when contacting their mortgage company or housing counselor.

A friendly virtual guide walks visitors through the site, frequently reminding them that is is important to contact their lender as soon as possible if they are having difficulties and guiding them through decision points.  Are you behind in your mortgage?  If not, the visitor is directed to information on refinancing.  If yes and the problem is short term the site presents alternatives for repayment. If the homeowner feels his problem are long term he is walked through options for staying in the house through a loan modification or Fannie Mae's Deed-for-Lease^TM program or getting the problem behind him with an explanation of the differences between foreclosure, short sale, and deed-in-lieu. 

The options are fully and clearly explained and there are videos to drive home important points.  For example, one video features three loan counselors telling borrowers to evaluate their ability to perform under any proposed repayment program. The site's interactivity is emphasized by several short visitor surveys sprinkled through the pages. The site also has a glossary, a primer on foreclosure fraud, and contact information for major lenders.

Jeff Hayward, Senior Vice President, Fannie Mae's National Servicing Organization said, "There are different answers for different situations and this site can be an important tool in the toolbox for borrowers trying to do the right thing. This initiative draws on the insights and feedback garnered through Fannie Mae's work with thousands of lender partners and housing counselors across the country, and will help connect borrowers with the servicing and counseling professionals they need to reach resolution. Our hope is that this site can be a trusted source of free information for borrowers and industry participants alike."

The company plans to implement a comprehensive marketing outreach campaign to raise awareness about the site, and also intends to use the site as a vehicle to roll out new options for borrowers that are currently being developed.