Free Homeownership Preservation Workshops to Help Hundreds of New Jersey Residents...

Free Homeownership Preservation Workshops to Help Hundreds of New Jersey
Residents Avoid Foreclosure

NeighborWorks(R) America, HOPE NOW, Senator Robert Menendez, Governor Jon
Corzine, Essex County Executive Joseph DiVencenzo, and Newark Mayor Cory
Booker join together to sponsor Home Preservation Workshops

NEWARK, N.J. and MOUNT LAUREL, N.J., July 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New
Jersey homeowners at risk of foreclosure will have the opportunity to meet
face-to-face with their mortgage lenders at two free HOPE NOW Home
Preservation Workshops in Newark on Friday, July 25 and in Mount Laurel on
Saturday, July 26. The Newark event on Friday will run from 3 - 9 PM and
will be held at the Essex County Vocational College Gymansium at 91 West
Market Street, Newark NJ 07013. The Mount Laurel event will run from 9 AM - 3
PM at The Enterprise Center at Burlington County College, 3331 Route 38, Mt.
Laurel, NJ, 08054.

This year, because our country is facing the largest mortgage crisis it has
ever seen, it is more critical than ever to focus on sustainable homeownership
and the resources that can help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

The Home Preservation Workshop, co-sponsored by NeighborWorks America, the
HOPE NOW Alliance in partnership with Senator Menendez, Governor Corzine,
County Executive DeVencenzo and Mayor Booker, is part of a national tour aimed
at giving struggling homeowners face time with their lenders and financial
counselors to develop a possible loan modification or financial plan to avoid
foreclosure.

In New Jersey, NeighborWorks has been working closely with the NJ Division of
Banking and Insurance, the NJ Housing Mortgage Finance Agency and Foreclosure
Prevention Task Forces in Newark and Trenton to fight foreclosure.

"There are thousands of hardworking New Jerseyans who through no fault of
their own are either behind on their mortgage payments or are facing
foreclosure," said Governor Jon S. Corzine. "Many times, homeowners are not
aware of the resources that are available to them. These workshops will
provide homeowners with critical information as well as an opportunity for
face-to-face meetings with credit counselors to help keep their homes. After
all, owning a home is part of the American Dream and we must do what we can to
help our fellow residents achieve that goal."

Senator Menendez said: "New Jerseyans who are struggling to keep up with high
mortgage payments or are on the brink of ballooning interest rates deserve
guidance about how they can keep their homes. We want them to know that there
are resources they can take advantage of in order to better understand their
financial situation and keep their monthly bills manageable. We are bringing
those resources together in one place for the benefit of New Jersey
homeowners. For far too many in our state and around the country, the American
Dream is turning into a nightmare. It is in the best interest of the families
facing foreclosure, communities that are facing falling property values and
our country that is facing an economic recession that we help avoid as many
foreclosures as possible."

These workshops, which include one-on-one sessions with homeowners, are free
and open to the public, will offer assistance in English and Spanish, and
include opportunities for homeowners to have a face-to-face conversation with
a third-party advisor or lender. The sessions will provide homeowners with a
better understanding of their financial situation and options, which can
possibly lead to loan modifications. Homeowners should bring their mortgage
documents with them to make the most of this opportunity.

"The key to making a wise investment and protecting that investment is
knowledge," Deborah Boatright, District Director, NeighborWorks(R) America
said. "The resources that this event provides can help homeowners understand
their financial situations, determine how they can avoid foreclosure and keep
the roof over their heads."

"The HOPE NOW Alliance is committed to keeping more homeowners in their homes
by working to prevent as many foreclosures as possible," said Larry Gilmore,
the director at HOPE NOW. "We have increased outreach to borrowers and held
over 14 homeownership preservation workshops across the country, reaching
nearly 6000 borrowers face-to-face. New Jersey homeowners will have an
opportunity to obtain immediate assistance, meeting directly with their
mortgage lender and local counseling organizations."

Today, homeownership remains a key way in which low and middle income families
build wealth. It is important to ensure that families receive the appropriate
loan product and have the education to maintain homeownership.
Housing counseling agencies around the country, such as Brand New Day in
Elizabeth, New Jersey, provide free, quality pre-purchase homeownership
counseling to tens of thousands of homeowners ever year, guaranteeing
long-term, sustainable homeownership for families. To find your local agency
go to www.hud.gov.

About NeighborWorks(R) America

NeighborWorks America creates opportunities for people to improve their lives
and strengthen their communities by providing access to homeownership and to
safe and affordable rental housing. To date, they have assisted nearly 850,000
low- to moderate-income families with their housing needs. Much of their
success is achieved through the support of the NeighborWorks network which
consists of more than 230 community development organizations working in 4,400
urban, suburban and rural communities in all 50 states, the District of
Columbia and Puerto Rico. In the last five years, NeighborWorks organizations
have generated more than $12.4 billion in reinvestment in these communities.
NeighborWorks America is the nation's leading trainer of community development
and affordable housing professionals. www.nw.org

About HOPE NOW

HOPE NOW is an alliance between counselors, servicers, investors and other
mortgage market participants. This alliance will maximize outreach efforts to
homeowners in distress to help them stay in their homes and will create a
unified, coordinated plan to reach and help as many homeowners as possible.
The members of this alliance recognize that by working together, they are more
effective than they would be working independently. www.hopenow.com

SOURCE HOPE NOW; NeighborWorks America

Emilio Dabul, +1-732-910-8795, emilio.dabul@drivepr.com, or Joe Dans,
+1-914-393-7758, jdans@warwick.net, both for NeighborWorks America; or Kate
McGann, +1-202-683-3143, kmcgann@qorvis.com, for HOPE NOW