C.A.R. Launches Mortgage Protection Program for First-Time Home Buyers

Quick Facts

• C.A.R. is the first statewide association in the nation to offer a mortgage protection plan for consumers.
• Approximately 3,000 households expected to receive assistance in first year.
• C.A.R.’s Housing Affordability Fund is dedicating $1 million toward program

LOS ANGELES (April 2) – The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) today launched the C.A.R. Housing Affordability Fund Mortgage Protection Program (C.A.R.H.A.F. MPP) for first-time home buyers.

Through the Housing Affordability Fund Mortgage Protection Program, first-time home buyers who lose their jobs due to layoffs may be eligible to receive up to $1,500 per month, for six months, to help make their mortgage payments. A qualified co-buyer also can participate in the program, and receive a monthly benefit of $750 per month for up to six months. Program benefits also include coverage for accidental disability and a $10,000 death benefit.

C.A.R.’s Housing Affordability Fund is dedicating $1 million toward its Mortgage Protection Program, and estimates that as many as 3,000 families will benefit from the program this year.

“The Mortgage Protection Program was developed to help ease the anxiety of consumers who are concerned about potential job loss and its impact on their ability to pay their mortgage should they purchase a home,” said C.A.R. President James Liptak. “It also provides peace of mind to those buyers who are actively searching for a home.”

To qualify for the Mortgage Protection Program, applicants must:.

Be a first-time home buyer – someone who has not owned a home in three or more years.

Open escrow April 2, 2009, or later, and close on or before Dec. 31, 2009.

Use a California REALTOR® in the transaction.

Purchase the property in California.

Be a W-2 employee (cannot be self-employed)

To apply for the program, home buyers must request an application for the H.A.F. Mortgage Protection Program from their REALTOR®.

Leading the way...® in California real estate for more than 100 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® ( http://www.car.org/) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States, with nearly 180,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.

The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) Housing Affordability Fund (H.A.F.) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) dedicated to addressing California’s housing crisis . It receives donations primarily from REALTOR® members and REALTOR® associations committed to addressing the housing problem in California. H.A.F. raises and distributes funds and partners with other groups to promote housing and homeownership and address housing opportunities locally and statewide.