WASHINGTON, DC -- (Marketwire) -- 04/03/09 -- HOPE NOW, the industry-created alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, counselors, and other mortgage market participants that since October 2007 has been helping homeowners deal with their mortgage concerns, today released the following statement by its executive director, Faith Schwartz:

The HOPE NOW Alliance closely monitors monthly performance trends related to mortgage modification data. As the OCC-OTS data for 2008 confirms foreclosure prevention efforts became more aggressive as the economy worsened. The OCC-OTS report shows that the volume of mortgage modifications increased as the economy turned downward in the second half of 2008. The data also confirms what HOPE NOW has been reporting for some time: that the mortgage industry has been increasingly utilizing loan modifications and is continuing to do so as serious economic conditions make this option the most appropriate choice to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

We expect these trends to continue in the months ahead. Now that the industry has firm affordability targets in place, the HOPE NOW Alliance expects that mortgage modifications will be completed even more aggressively in the coming months than has been the case in the past. Our members are reporting to us that they have been increasingly using loan modifications during 2009, and this trend will be reflected when the OCC-OTS issues its next report on mortgage lending industry's activities for 2009.

For more information about HOPE NOW, go to www.HopeNow.com