The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has released translated versions of 19 single-family mortgage documents in Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. These documents are intended to assist lenders, servicers, housing counselors, and other FHA program participants in explaining information related to FHA-insured mortgages to individuals with limited English proficiency before they sign the official English versions.
This initiative adds to the 40 previously published translated mortgage origination documents and homeownership education resources already available to consumers. The goal is to eliminate language barriers for FHA consumers whose primary language is not English.
"At HUD, we are working to ensure that homeownership is accessible to everyone who wants it – particularly for first-time homebuyers. To do that, we must make sure everyone has access to information about our programs. This common-sense action will help families achieve their dream of owning a home," said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. "Today, we are taking a crucial step towards a more inclusive, diverse, and equitable generation of homeowners."
Damon Smith | General Counsel
| Official website
Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon emphasized the importance of removing language barriers for borrowers with FHA-insured mortgages: "We believe it’s critical for borrowers to understand the options for purchasing a home and for accessing assistance if an existing borrower has difficulty in making their mortgage payments," she said. "With almost 60 mortgage documents translated into multiple languages, we now have a comprehensive collection of translated tools and resources for our program partners to use to more effectively reach those whose first language is not English."
The newly available translated mortgage documents include essential forms such as:
- Borrower’s Consent to Voluntary Termination of FHA Mortgage Insurance
- FHA-HAMP Partial Claim Promissory Note and Partial Claim Subordinate Mortgage
- Notice to Homeowner: Release of Personal Liability for Assumptions
- Notice to Occupant of Pending Acquisition
- Payoff Procedure Disclosure
- Pre-Foreclosure Sale Addendum
- Prepayment Disclosure Statements
Additionally, several other important forms related to annual payment supplements, final payment disclosures, payment supplement agreements, property disposition programs including lead-based paint disclosures addenda (with or without pertinent records), sales contracts under various conditions like pre-foreclosure sale procedures have been made available.
These documents can be accessed on FHA’s language access web page.
