Hat tip to Stephen for passing this along, from propublica:

The Hope for Homeowners program was created by Congress last summer to help an estimated 400,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure. But it could more aptly be called the Hope for A Homeowner program, given that just ONE has used it successfully since its October launch.

But silver linings are hard to come by these days, so we might as well point out that she is one satisfied customer.

“What a relief!” the lucky homeowner from Litchfield Park, Ariz., wrote to her mortgage bank, NationsChoice, in February. “An extra $542 in monthly savings and a $100,000+ principal reduction sure is a relief. Thank you!”

Hope for Homeowners was designed to give people who couldn’t afford their mortgage payments a chance to refinance into a 30-year, fixed-rate loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration, even if they owed more than their home was worth. But the lender would need to reduce the amount the borrower owed before the FHA, a division of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, would insure the loan.

The program has been a flop. But Congress and the administration are trying to rescue it, envisioning it as a key component of the government’s campaign to curb foreclosures. On Wednesday, President Obama signed a bill that includes improvements to the program.

Some think this is a mistake.

see the rest of the article here:

http://www.propublica.org/ion/bailout/item/analysts-tweaks-may-not-save-congress-failed-foreclosure-fix-522/#10778

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