Thursday, Jun 20 2013 2:49PM

Housing counseling may help families overcome financial constraints and remain in their homes.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced its plans to extend $40 million in housing counseling grants to key organizations that will help distressed homeowners remain in their houses.

The grants will help millions secure affordable housing assistance and obtain the educational resources they need to make informed choices about affordability, HUD explained. 

"The HUD-approved counseling agencies this funding supports are crucial in helping families manage their money, navigate the homebuying process, and secure their financial futures," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "The evidence is clear that housing counseling works. These grants are a smart investment to help families and individuals find and keep housing which helps promote neighborhood stability in the long term."

Christopher Bond, who co-chairs the Bipartisan Policy Center's Housing Commission, recently contributed a post in the St. Louis Dispatch, that highlighted the tangible benefits of housing counseling. He noted that an "emergency response plan" offered through housing counseling helps homeowners who are facing job losses, medical bills or a financial crisis develop a strategy to manage mortgage payments.

Citing a separate HUD study, Bond also noted that 70 percent of homeowners who obtained counseling before becoming delinquent on their mortgages became current on the payments roughly 18 months later. 

For more information, check out this resource: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development