A non-profit foundation tied to financial services and insurance giant Genworth Financial said Monday that it had funded a two-year initative, called Homeownership Helps, through three well-known housing organizations. The Genworth Foundation said Monday it committed $2 million in grants over two years to help those struggling with a current mortgage as well as to provide new borrower education programs via HomeFree-USA, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, and NeighborWorks America. “Homeownership Helps’ combination of financial assistance to troubled homeowners and educational outreach will help to minimize foreclosures today and in the future,” said Kenneth D. Wade, CEO at NeighborWorks. “We believe that modest financial assistance early in the foreclosure prevention process can have significant influence on the ability of low- and moderate income families to sustain homeownership if faced with a temporary financial crisis.” The NCRC will use the funds to support direct intervention to assist homeowners at right of foreclosure, including direct grant assistance for troubled borrowers; NeighborWorks America will undertake substantially similar work, via its network of outreach and counseling centers. HomeFree-USA, in contrast, will use awarded funds to promote financial literacy among homeowners. Allocation of funds between the three organizations was not disclosed. Genworth Financial, which supports the non-profit foundation, is the nation’s fifth-largest provider of mortgage insurance. For more information, visit http://www.genworth.com/foundation.

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