Program
Program Information
The Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF) helps those who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments and other housing expenses because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pursuant to U.S. Treasury guidance, at least 60% of assistance provided must be provided to low-income homeowners. Any assistance provided to medium-income homeowners must prioritize socially disadvantaged individuals (as defined by U.S. Treasury). To help meet these requirements, OHCS only provides ongoing payment assistance to low-income households. OHCS opened its HAF program first to homeowners the most at risk of foreclosure and socially disadvantaged individuals.
Homeowners who apply for relief through the Homeowner Assistance Fund will be evaluated for all its programs. Homeowners may not receive more than $60,000 in total assistance.
Past-Due Payment Relief Program
The Past-Due Payment Relief program provides eligible low- and medium-income homeowners with up to $50,000 to pay off past-due balances for eligible housing costs, including:
- unresolved forbearance plan balances
- forward (traditional) mortgages, ITIN loans, and closed home equity lines of credit
- reverse mortgages
- loans secured by manufactured homes (chattel loans) and lot fees
- loans secured by floating homes and moorage fees
- land sale contracts
- property taxes that are at least three years delinquent
- homeowners’ association (HOA) or condo association dues
- monthly maintenance fees for cooperative ownership housing
- ground lease payments and/or land trust charges
Ongoing Payment Relief Program
The Ongoing Payment Relief program provides eligible low-income homeowners with money to cover all or some of their monthly mortgage payments and housing costs going forward for up to six months, not to exceed $10,000 per household.
Note: To finish winding down the program and submit its close-out report to the U.S. Treasury, OHCS must pick a final date for HAF payments. OHCS plans to make its final HAF payments in February 2025, and no ongoing assistance payments will be made after that month. For this reason, homeowners whose first ongoing HAF payment occurs in or after September 2024 will receive fewer ongoing payments.
Please note that OHCS will not provide ongoing payment assistance for county property taxes or homeowner’s insurance unless those costs are included in the monthly mortgage payment amount.
The HAF assistance is secured to your property by a five-year, no-interest, no-payment, forgivable security interest. Although the security interest states “up to $60,000,” the actual lien amount is the total amount of assistance received. If you commit fraud, provide false information, or fail to provide further information that may be requested, Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) will not forgive your loan, and it will need to be repaid in full. Otherwise, if you live in your home for five years, the HAF loan will be forgiven.
If you sell your home or take cash out of your home through a refinance or new loan within five years, you must repay the portion of the loan that is not forgiven, plus any processing and recording fees. OHCS has the discretion whether to provide forgiveness earlier than five years. Forgiveness is usually calculated at 20% per year starting one year after the final HAF assistance payment. For example, if the final HAF payment was made on March 20, 2024, we typically forgive 20% for payoffs after March 20, 2025, 40% for payoffs after March 20, 2026, 60% for payoffs after March 20, 2027, and 80% for payoffs after March 20, 2028. The loan would be fully forgiven with a lien release in April 2029 because all March five-year forgiveness releases will be processed together the following month. Your escrow or lending agent can request a payoff statement by emailing haf.payoffs@hcs.oregon.gov.
You are permitted to modify your mortgage or set up a mortgage escrow account without triggering the repayment requirement, if you are not taking cash out. OHCS will evaluate requests for short sales or government or nonprofit habitability programs on a case-by-case basis.
What’s next?
Learn more about the Homeowner Assistance Fund’s eligibility criteria.