Congress Calls for Foreclosure Program Revamp

The government should retool its foreclosure-prevention program because so far it hasn’t worked, a report released Tuesday by the Congressional Oversight Panel declares.

The program "will never have the reach necessary to put an appreciable dent into the foreclosure crisis," the report says.

The report calls for the Treasury Department to set objectives and hold banks that administer mortgages accountable for failing to complete loan modifications properly. It also recommends allowing borrowers to apply for loan modifications online and calls for a system to monitor cases and intervene when borrowers fall behind on their payments on modified mortgages.

Source: Associated Press (12/14/2010)