Author: James

New Jersey homeowners whose finances have been affected by the novel coronavirus will get a 90-day reprieve on their mortgage payments, said Gov. Phil Murphy on Saturday.

Lenders will also waive late fees and other expenses that borrowers would otherwise incur due to the grace period, Murphy announced in a tweet.

The banks are offering a mortgage payment forbearance of up to 90 days for COVID-19 related reasons. In a forbearance, mortgage holders can pause or reduce the amount they pay each month for a specified period of time. 

Under the deal with New Jersey, lenders will provide homeowners with a streamlined process to apply for forbearance. They will offer borrowers a chance to ask for more relief, if they continue to show they’re facing hardship

With more than 92,000 coronavirus cases and at least 1,380 deaths in the U.S. that have been linked to COVID-19, the U.S. currently has the most reported cases of coronavirus across the globe, putting life on hold for millions of Americans. This, as U.S. jobless claims surged to 3.283 million Thursday.

Not surprisingly, among the latest sectors that has now ground to a screeching halt: real estate.

According to a flash survey on March 16 and 17 by the National Association of Realtors, Realtors across the country are canceling their open houses and half of all agents reported a drop in buyer interest. That percentage tripled in just a week. Today that percentage is almost certainly much higher.

The survey polled a random sample of 72,734 members on March 16