'Project Lifeline' Suspending US Home Forclosures For 30 Days

As US homeowners continue to default on mortgage loans in record numbers the Bush administration and six of the country's largest financial institutions are planning to put the foreclosure process on hold for 30 days.

The new plan being called 'Project Lifeline' will give qualifying homeowners the opportunity to put the foreclosure process off for a month while the bank tries to figure out a way to make the loan more affordable for the homeowner. The plan will be available to people that have taken out a variety of types of loans, not just the subprime loans that we've heard so much about recently. MSNBC reports that the financial institutions that are a part of Project Lifeline include Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., Countrywide Financial Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Washington Mutual Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. Consumer groups are keeping a close eye on the project's efforts hoping that this isn't just a "quick fix" that will only put off the problems for a later date. In any case, for thousands of homeowners in the US that are about to drop into foreclosure, they can breathe a little easier knowing that at least some sort of help (and a 30 day reprieve) are on the way.