Household, ACORN Proposed Settlement

Household International Inc., the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, and a group of borrowers have announced a proposed settlement of a nationwide class-action lawsuit involving the mortgage lending practices of Household's two U.S. branch-based businesses.The core of the settlement with the two businesses, Household Finance Corp. and Beneficial Corp., is a foreclosure avoidance program that will provide relief to delinquent Household borrowers who are at risk of losing their homes, the announcement said. Components of the program include interest rate reductions, waivers of unpaid late charges, deferral of accrued unpaid interest, and principal reductions. In addition, Household has agreed to provide funding for ACORN-sponsored financial counseling and literacy programs over the next three years. "Household's performance on implementing the foreclosure avoidance program has been exceptional, and we are hopeful that our future work together will deliver enormous benefits to subprime borrowers," said ACORN president Maude Hurd. Household can be found online at http://www.household.com.