www.hudclips.org 


U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Washington, D.C. 20410-8000

February 21, 1996
 
MORTGAGEE LETTER 96-9
 
TO:  ALL APPROVED MORTGAGEES
 
ATTENTION:  SINGLE FAMILY SERVICING MANAGERS
 
SUBJECT:  Housing Counseling Toll Free Referral Service
 
     The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development offers
a toll-free housing counseling telephone referral service at
1-800-569-4287.  The purpose of this service is to provide
potential homebuyers, current homeowners and renters with the
names and telephone numbers of their nearest HUD approved housing
counseling agencies.
 
The features of this toll-free number include:
 
     o  Counseling referrals in both English and Spanish
 
     o  Automated referrals for touch tone callers by ZIP code
 
     o  Operator assistance for rotary telephone callers provided
        from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. EST, 7 days a week
 
     o  TDD service for the hearing impaired available at
        1-800-358-6216
 
     Lenders as well as the general public may obtain a copy of
the most recent housing counseling agency directory from the
World Wide Web on HUD's Home Page located at
http://www.hud.gov/hsg/sf.html.  To download this document, from
the Single Family Home Page, click on Housing Counseling
Services. The directory can be downloaded for individual states
or for all states.  Printed copies will no longer be available
from HUD offices because of cost considerations and the rapid
pace with which changes occur to the list.   Web access is
available through a variety of service providers.
 
     Services provided by housing counseling agencies include:
first-time homebuyer information, mortgage default and
delinquency counseling, reverse mortgage (HECM) counseling,
financial management and property maintenance guidance.  The
Department especially encourages all mortgagees to refer
borrowers who are delinquent in their mortgage payments to this
toll free housing counseling referral service.
 
     If you have any questions, please contact Joan Morgan, at
202/708-0614, ext. 2213.  This letter supersedes Mortgagee Letter
93-43, issued December 30, 1993.
 
Sincerely yours,
 

Nicolas P. Retsinas
Assistant Secretary for Housing-
Federal Housing Commissioner