Private Mortgage Insurance A Source Of Help For Financially Strapped Homeowners?

The Wall Street Journal reports:

• Homeowners in trouble may find help from an unlikely source: their private mortgage insurance company. [...] Homeowners who've tried unsuccessfully to get help, may have one more opportunity to get back on their feet by turning to their private mortgage insurer. Private mortgage insurance (not to be confused with homeowners insurance) is required of anyone who buys a home with less than a 20% down payment. These policies protect the lender in the event of a default, covering anywhere between 12% and 35% of their losses on the property, says Keith Gumbinger, vice president at mortgage information firm HSH Associates.

For more, see Mortgage Insurers to the Rescue?