For release: January 19, 2011
SC HELP Foreclosure Prevention Program Now Available Statewide
Almost $300 million in funds to keep homeowners in their homes.
[Columbia, SC] Following a successful pilot program and Treasury’s approval of South Carolina’s readiness assessment, SC Housing Corp. will take its foreclosure prevention program statewide. Starting January 20, the South Carolina Homeownership and Employment Lending Program (SC HELP) will use almost $300 million in federal funds to help responsible but struggling homeowners in the state.
Key components for SC HELP include:
- Monthly Payment Assistance-assisting homeowners with monthly payments for a defined period of time while they seek employment and a return to self sustainability.
- Direct Loan Assistance-for borrowers who have experienced a hardship but have regained the ability to pay. Funds can be used to pay arrearages in order to bring the loan current.
- Property Disposition Assistance-in cases where the mortgage cannot be salvaged, funds may be provided to incentivize short sales, deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure and to help transition families from homeownership to rental housing.
Homeowners applying for Monthly Payment Assistance or Direct Loan Assistance must meet certain threshold requirements in order to apply for help:
1. Borrower or co-borrower must be able to document that the delinquency was a result of a hardship event beyond his/her control (i.e. unemployment, death of a spouse, catastrophic medical expenses, etc.)
2. Mortgage payments must have been made on time for 12 months preceding the hardship event with no more than two 30-day late occurrences
3. The property securing the mortgage must be owner-occupied as a full-time residence
4. Borrower must provide a financial hardship affidavit
5. Mortgage can be no more than 120 days delinquent
6. Loan servicer/investor must be willing to accept payments and provide required data and reporting
Assistance from SC HELP will be provided in the form of a nonrecourse zero-percent interest, non-amortizing, forgivable loan secured by a subordinate lien on the subject property. The loan will be forgiven over a five-year period at a rate of 20% per year. If property is sold or refinanced prior to the loan termination date, funds will be recovered should sufficient equity be available from the transaction. The Property Disposition Assistance Program will provide a one time, lump sum grant to the recipient.
Additional criteria and documentation requirements must be met for final eligibility determination. Homeowners wishing to make an application should apply online at www.SCMortgageHelp.com. SC HELP officials emphasize that using the online application is the fastest and most efficient way to begin the process. Homeowners without internet access may call toll-free to 855-HELP-4-SC (855 435-7472) to begin the process.
SC HELP is intended to assist responsible borrowers – those borrowers who are facing possible foreclosure due to circumstances beyond their control, i.e. unemployment, death of a spouse, catastrophic medical expenses and/or divorce. SC HELP is NOT intended to serve borrowers who are facing foreclosure due to poor credit and/or debt management, stripping the equity from their home for non-essential purposes, or overall mismanagement of their personal budget.
Additional information, background and resources are now posted on SC State Housing’s website, as well as www.SCMortgageHelp.com, and will be updated frequently.
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SC Housing Corp. is a nonprofit division of the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority (SC State Housing).
Filed under Announcements, Carolina Real Estate, Foreclosed Houses, Fort Mill SC, Home Sellers, Rock Hill SC, Sell Your Home, Tega Cay SC by 
With so many incentives to buy a home, now is by no doubt, the time to buy. With lenders tightening their guidelines, you might want to be sure you have your finances in check.
With brand new federal regulations, this will help you understand how it will benefit you and tame your credit card debt. The bad news, is because of this government intervention you might have already seen a rise in your interest rates. This is from Red Book Magazine
1. They can’t raise interest rates on debt you’ve already racked up. They can if you are more than 60 days late on these payments. So pay your cards on time!
2. If your card charges you different interest rates (say, 14% for existing balances, and 2% for balance transfers), they must apply your payments to the debt carrying the highest rates first. So the faster you pay it off, the more money you save.
3. They can’t raise your rates if they find out you’ve been late on other credit cards or loans. This doesn’t mean you credit score will not be affected, which can eventually lead to higher interest rates. Your best bet is just to pay it on time.
4. You can no longer go over your credit limit and be charged the subsequent fees- unless you notify your credit card company in writing that you’d like to spend more than your limit. So don’t spend more than your limit.
5. They will tell you on your bill how long it will take to pay off your debt and how much it will cost you, including interest, if you pay only the minimum each month. This will be an eye opener, and a hard lesson for many. Pay more than the minimum or you could possible pay on this card longer than your house mortgage.
6. Those under 21years old won’t be able to get a credit card unless they show proof of income or get an adult to cosign. I think this is the smartest law of all! When I was in college, you would sign your life away for a free t-shirt or can coozie. All adults over the age of 21 take note…DON’T COSIGN
- The down payment assistance available is $7,000.
- To qualify for the Forgivable down payment option, a 1 person household’s income in YORK County cannot exceed $37,250 and $42,550 for a 2 person household.
- Must live in the home 5 years in order for the loan to be completely forgiven.
- The Home price is up to $208,000 in YORK county.
- 640 minimum credit score
- The interest rate is 5.125% on a 30 yr fixed rate.
Call me or email me for more information on this program. sharon@SharonSellsCarolina.com
Filed under Announcements, Fort Mill SC, Home Buyers, Real Estate Tools, Rock Hill SC, Tega Cay SC by
This past weekend Rock Hill and Fort Mill SC experienced the 3rd winter storm in as many weeks. It’s been my experience that we typically get one storm per winter season, but not this year! This year, we’ve had at least 5 and who knows how many more could be on the way before it’s all over with!
At any rate, I absolutely LOVE how pretty snow is and certainly enjoyed this past weekends snow fall.
This photo comes courtesy of the Rock Hill Herald.
Filed under Fort Mill SC, Fun Stuff, Life In the Carolinas, Rock Hill SC by
Love’s Plaza, located at the corner of Cherry St. and Mt. Galant Rd, is the latest business to comply with a 2002 policy aimed at cleaning up Cherry St. The Rock Hill City Council approved a plan in 2002 that would require all businesses in the city limits along Cherry Road and Saluda Street to comply with tighter limits on signage.
According to the Rock Hill Herald Online, “This policy allows only monument-style signs that are no more than 10 feet high, featuring no more than 200 square feet of sign surface on each side. That rules out the towering pole signs and billboards that have dominated much of Cherry Road.”
The city agreed to immediately pay up to 60% of the cost of replacing non-conforming signs, with that amount being reduced over time, and none of paid in 2010.
The idea behind the policy was to clean up the commercial section of Rock Hill, but if it’s taking almost 7 years to complete, how much of an effort is the city really making? Believe me, I’m all for doing whatever it takes to clean up anything that devalues anything about our beloved Rock Hill SC so I definitely appreciate Love’s taking down the sign, but at what point do we get serious and make a concerted effort to really make it happen?
I don’t have a list of businesses or signs that don’t comply with the policy, but it would certainly be interesting to see a list of everyone that’s complied and those that have yet to fall in line.
