FHA extends COVID-19 forbearance request time

The FHA has announced it is extending the date for single family homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages to request an initial forbearance from their mortgage servicer to forbear their mortgage payments for up to six months. Homeowners experiencing a financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic may now request an initial forbearance through December 31, 2020 (the deadline was previously October 30). The FHA requires mortgage servicers to:

• Offer homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages mortgage payment forbearance when the homeowner requests it, with the option to extend the forbearance for up to a year in total. FHA does not require a lump sum payment at the end of the forbearance period.
• Assess homeowners who receive COVID-19 forbearance for FHA's special COVID-19 National Emergency Standalone Partial Claim before the end of the forbearance period. This program puts all suspended mortgage payment amounts owed into a junior lien, which is only repaid when the homeowner sells the home, refinances the mortgage, or the mortgage is otherwise extinguished.
• Assess homeowners who are not eligible for the COVID-19 National Emergency Standalone Partial Claim for one of FHA’s COVID-19 expanded home retention solutions announced on July 8, 2020.