Foreclosure, Pre-Foreclosure and Rental Counseling
Governor Murphy Announces Effort to Help Renters, Homeowners Threatened by Potential Foreclosure
At the direction of Governor Murphy, the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency’s (NJHMFA) housing counseling initiative is expanding to include renters, who may be concerned with eviction, and homeowners who may need counseling to help prevent possible foreclosure. These services are available at no cost to you.
NJHMFA is expanding its Foreclosure Mediation Assistance Program (FMAP) to include renter and pre-foreclosure counseling by utilizing a network of participating housing counselors in each county. The counseling is available now and can be provided remotely.
The expanded program will now include pre-foreclosure counseling to provide upfront assistance to help homeowners avoid potential foreclosure. At the same time, the counseling made available to renters will guide them on how to approach discussions with their landlords on dealing with their rent situation.
Renters can also review our list of NJHMFA Properties Affected by Rent Increase Suspension to see if their property is affected by the recent rent increase freeze.
To learn more about your rights and the resources available to you as a renter during the COVID-19 crisis, visit New Jersey's Eviction Moratorium Information & Question Form.
Participating Housing Counselors by County
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Atlantic County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Navicore NJ Citizen Action Bergen County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Burlington County Clarifi Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling NJ Citizen Action Camden County Clarifi Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling NJ Citizen Action Cape May County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Navicore NJ Citizen Action Cumberland County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Navicore NJ Citizen Action Essex County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Gloucester County Clarifi NJ Citizen Action Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Hudson County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Hunterdon County Central Jersey Housing Resource Center Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Navicore NJ Citizen Action Puerto Rican Action Board Mercer County Affordable Housing Alliance of NJ Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Isles, Inc. Navicore NJ Citizen Action Middlesex County Central Jersey Housing Resource Center Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Navicore |
Middlesex County NJ Citizen Action Puerto Rican Action Board Monmouth County Affordable Housing Alliance of NJ Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Isles, Inc. Navicore NJ Citizen Action Morris County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Ocean County Affordable Housing Alliance of NJ Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Isles, Inc. Navicore NJ Citizen Action Passaic County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Salem County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Navicore NJ Citizen Action Somerset County Central Jersey Housing Resource Center Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Navicore NJ Citizen Action Puerto Rican Action Board Sussex County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Union County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation Warren County Consumer Credit and Budget Counseling Epic CDC Housing Partnership NJ Citizen Action Tri-City Peoples Corporation |
COVID-19 and Housing Discrimination
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, national origin, religion, and disability, among other protected characteristics, even if the conduct at issue stems from concerns related to COVID-19. To learn more, please review the Division on Civil Rights’ recent guidance on civil rights and COVID-19. If you would like to speak to a housing investigator, please contact the Division on Civil Rights at 1-866-405-3050.
Have you or someone you know received a foreclosure notice?
If yes, free housing counseling is available through NJHMFA’s Foreclosure Mediation Assistance Program.
Mediation can save a home from foreclosure, yet too many homeowners enter the foreclosure process with their mortgage lender without an understanding of the type of relief that may be available to them. Free housing counseling assistance is available to help.
Foreclosure Mediation Assistance Program
To qualify for mediation:
- The property must be the subject of an active residential mortgage foreclosure action.
- Mediation must be requested within 60 days after service of the foreclosure summons and complaint unless a court order is entered directing the parties to mediation.
- The homeowner must be living in the property that is in foreclosure, and all borrowers listed on the note must agree to participate in mediation.
- The homeowner will not qualify if they are in bankruptcy.
How can housing counseling help?
A housing counselor acts as an advocate and can help guide homeowners through New Jersey’s existing court mediation program by creating an action plan to help to try and save your home. They can also determine if the homeowner requires further assistance and can provide other services, such as negotiating with the lender or providing post-mediation counseling and/or transition assistance.
Research has shown that homeowners who participated in counseling:
- were nearly three times as likely to receive a loan modification;
- 70 percent more likely to remain current on their mortgage after receiving the loan modification;
- achieved on average a reduction of $5,000 annually on their mortgage payment.
If you qualify for mediation assistance, contact a housing counselor assigned to the county you live in as soon as possible.
For a list of HUD-Certified New Jersey Housing Counseling Agencies, download our Foreclosure Fast Facts documents by clicking on the graphics below.
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| Download the Foreclosure Fast Facts in English (503k PDF) | Descargue el documento Generalidades Sobre Ejecuciones Hioptecarias en Español (385k PDF) |
Don't wait. The sooner you call a HUD-Certified Housing Counselor, the more options you'll have.
For more information on the New Jersey Courts Foreclosure Mediation Program, please visit the New Jersey Courts Office of Foreclosure.
If you are affiliated with a HUD certified Housing Counseling Agency and would like to participate as a qualified applicant providing services in the Foreclosure Mediation Assistance Program (FMAP), Please apply as a Partner by visiting https://njhousing.gov/dca/hmfa/about/partner/ and Downloading the "Qualified Housing Counselor Application"
