Fannie Opens Mortgage Help Center in Ontario, Calif.

Fannie Mae this week opened a mortgage help center in Ontario, Calif., and now operates a dozen centers nationwide that provide free education and counseling servicers to struggling homeowners.

Ontario along with Fontana, Calif., and San Bernardino County are considering using eminent domain to seize mortgages and restructure them to help distressed borrowers stay in their homes.

California is on the forefront of foreclosure actions. Though Nevada posted the nation's highest foreclosure rate in the first half of 2012, California boasted the largest increase in new foreclosure actions, with an 18% jump in foreclosure starts in June, according to RealtyTrac.