Ocwen Gives Homeowner a Free Year of Mortgage Payments a Much Deserving Woman Overwhelmed By Company's Kindness
Chicago/West Palm Beach, FL – (December 18, 2006) With tears streaming down her face, Elizabeth Barlow and her three grandchildren could not believe their ears, Ocwen Financial Corporation’s (NYSE:OCN) first-ever “Home for the Holidays” program awarded her mortgage payments for a year with free financial counseling. Ocwen’s “Home for the Holidays” initiative provides direct support to a customer whose family is struggling to overcome challenging odds. This new program goes the extra mile to help a selected family avoid foreclosure.
Ten years ago, Elizabeth Barlow, of Chicago, Illinois bought her home with her partner, Charles Anderson, for $52,000. “After moving 5 times in one year, we were ready to stay in one place, especially for the sake of the children,” recalls Elizabeth. At the time, Elizabeth was taking care of several foster children as well as raising two grandchildren of her own. Unfortunately, in 1998, Charles passed away. In 1999, Elizabeth found out she had cancer, but that did not stop her from taking in yet another granddaughter. Elizabeth had a recurrence of cancer this year and has undergone 16 weeks of radiation. She is currently raising three teenage grandchildren in her home as well as caring for a seven month old granddaughter.
Due to the large increase in her heating bills, Ms. Barlow started falling behind on her mortgage last winter. Ocwen immediately recognized these extraordinary challenges that Elizabeth faced and chose her as the first recipient of the program. “Ocwen’s goal is to keep families in their homes. We realize the importance of helping the families in our own communities and plan to make ‘Home for the Holidays’ an annual program,” said Opal Comfort, Ocwen’s Community Relations Manager. “Elizabeth has shown amazing strength and dedication to her family and we are glad to be a part of this special gift.” Despite her struggles and challenges, Elizabeth, remains positive, “These mortgage payments are the best blessing I have ever received. And now we are just waiting for the cancer to be gone again.”
Elizabeth first contacted the Northwest Side Housing Center (NWSHC) in June 2006. She received a letter from NWSHC offering assistance and telling her about the partnership between Ocwen and NWSHC and other regional affiliates of the National Training and Information Center (NTIC). Since then, Ocwen, NTIC and NWSHC have been working together to help Elizabeth and her family through Ocwen’s Homeownership Preservation Initiative. The NWSHC is one of nine NTIC affiliates working with Ocwen to help keep customers in their homes. As the first recipient of Ocwen’s Home for the Holidays Program, Elizabeth Barlow will start the New Year with a promise of hope and peace of mind that she will keep her home.
Ocwen is one of the largest independent servicers of non-conforming mortgage loans in the United States. Through its Homeownership Preservation Initiative, Ocwen partners with national and local non-profit organizations to implement programs to prevent foreclosure. Foreclosure is clearly a bad outcome for the customer, a financial loss for both Ocwen as loan servicer and the investor who owns the loan, and may serve to destabilize fragile neighborhoods. As another of its initiatives to combat foreclosures, Ocwen is a founding sponsor of a national foreclosure prevention program organized by the NeighborWorks® Center for Foreclosure Solutions, including an upcoming awareness campaign with the National ad Council.
Ocwen Financial Corporation is a leading provider of servicing and origination processing solutions to the loan industry with headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida, offices in, Orlando, Florida, Downers Grove, Illinois and Atlanta, Georgia and global operations in Canada, Germany, India and Taiwan. We make our clients’ loans worth more by leveraging our superior processes, innovative technology and high-quality, cost-effective global human resources. Additional information is available at www.ocwen.com.
Contact:
Opal Comfort
Sr. Manager, Community Relations
T: (561) 682-7671
