The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development extends foreclosure moratoriums

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has extended its foreclosure moratoriums for FHA-insured single family home mortgages and home equity mortgages in federally declared major disaster areas to April 11, 2025.

The extension is intended to give borrowers affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton additional time to access federal, state or local housing resources or to consult with HUD-approve housing counselors or to rebuild their homes.

“When disaster strikes, we know that families and communities need not only resources, but time to recover,” HUD Agency Head Adrianne Todman said in a press release. “Today, by extending our foreclosure moratorium, we continue the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to help those affected by the catastrophic Hurricanes Helene and Milton to repair and rebuild their homes, communities, and lives.”

After the hurricanes struck, the FHA implemented automatic 90-day foreclosure moratoriums that required mortgage servicers to halt the initiation or completion of foreclosure actions in federally declared disaster areas on the date each disaster was declared.

“Because the consecutive Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused a great deal of damage and disruption, FHA believes it is appropriate to extend our foreclosure moratoriums by 120 days,” said Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon. “This extension will provide more time for homeowners to review a range of options with their mortgage servicer if they are unable to resume regular mortgage payments due to the impact of the disaster.”

In North Carolina, President Biden declared a major disaster exists in Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, and Yancey Counties and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Borrowers with FHA-insured mortgages located in Hurricanes Helen and Milton disaster areas should contact their mortgage or loan servicer immediately for assistance. Multiple options are available for those who cannot resume their regular mortgage payments yet. Borrowers can also obtain additional assistance in the following ways:

• Visit the FHA Disaster Relief site or call the FHA Resource Center at 1-800-304-9320 to learn more about disaster relief options.
• Contact a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. These agencies have counselors available to assist those impacted by natural disasters in determining assistance needs and identifying available resources. Homeowners can find a HUD-approved housing counseling agency online or use HUD’s telephone look-up tool by calling (800) 569-4287. The telephone look-up tool includes access to information in more than 250 different languages. Borrowers do not have to have an FHA-insured mortgage to meet with a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. There is never a fee for foreclosure prevention counseling.
• For borrowers whose homes are destroyed or damaged to an extent that requires reconstruction or complete replacement, contact an FHA-approved lender about FHA’s Section 203(h) program. This program provides 100 percent financing for eligible homeowners to rebuild their home or purchase a new one.
• For borrowers seeking to purchase and/or repair a home that has been damaged, contact an FHA-approved lender about FHA’s Section 203(k) loan program. This program allows individuals to finance the purchase or refinance of a house, as well as the costs of repair or renovation, through a single mortgage.