Michiganders hard hit by the foreclosure crisis might get some help thanks to a national settlement approved this week by a federal judge. But that help won’t be coming immediately.
The $26 billion settlement involves 49 states, the District of Columbia and five of the largest mortgage lenders in the United States: Bank of America, Wells Fargo, J.P. Morgan Chase, Citibank and Ally Financial.
The settlement will include money to help some homeowners refinance their mortgages and will provide modest cash payments to people who lost their homes to foreclosure who should not have.
Michigan’s share of the settlement is just under $800 million.
Joy Yearout is a spokeswoman for Michigan’s Attorney General. She says it will take a few years to determine which Michiganders are eligible for the settlement and to make the payouts.
"The first step is going to be working with the banks to find out who is eligible…and then the second part will be notifying them…making sure they are aware of all their options and they can take advantage of the settlement," says Yearout. “This is the very beginning of this process…and there are a lot of steps to go through still.”
Michigan has been one of the states hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis.
