Government programs aimed to help struggling homeowners get back on their feet shows positive signs according to the latest Obama Administration Housing Scoreboard, released on Thursday.
"The Obama Administration's efforts to speed housing recovery are showing clear signs of traction," Erika Poethig, Acting Assistant Secretary for the Department of Housing and Urban Development told CNN.
The report indicates that home values are back to levels not seen since the beginning to Obama's term and the number of homeowners who are behind on their mortgage is down 11 percent since last year.
The scoreboard also shows that this year alone, more than half a million borrowers have had their loans refinanced through government programs like the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP).
"It is clear that we're making progress. But with so many households still struggling to make ends meet, we have important work ahead," Poethig told CNN.
More improvements shown in the housing market came last April, when the attorneys general of 49 states and the District of Columbia made a $25 billion settlement deal with the nation's five largest banks. That deal was made over so-called robo-signing foreclosure abuses and is expected to help another couple of million borrowers reduce their mortgage payments.
These government mortgage relief efforts include the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), which has led to a total of more than $14.4 billion in lowered borrowers' payments; Home Affordable Refinance Program, which helps borrowers who are current on their mortgage payments but are having a hard time refinancing their mortgage because owe more on their home than it is worth; Second Lien Modification Program (2MP), which provides assistance to homeowners who have second mortgages or home equity lines of credit in addition to their primary mortgages; and Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA), which aims at borrowers who are underwater on their mortgages and who've been denied a modification by other programs.
According to the HUD, more than 5.4 million Americans who borrow from lenders have received aid, since the administration started rolling out its programs early 2009.
