Program areas at Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta
Credit Counseling and financial education:during 2016, Clearpoint, through its branch network of financial specialists, conducted 28,160 Credit Counseling sessions. These no-cost Counseling sessions were conducted in person, by telephone, and via the internet and are offered to any person in need of financial assistance.hispanic centers for excellenceone of Clearpoint's emerging markets and services is the work done by our hispanic centers for financial excellence (hcfe). Hcfes provide relation-based, long-term financial lteracy support in low-to-moderate hispanic centers for financial education. Unlike most of Clearpoint's traditional crisis-based Counseling (foreclosure prevention, debt management programs, etc. ), this innovative program focuses on helping consumers accomplish proactive goal-based objectives. Key goals outlined by hcfe consumers include starting a business, buying a car, understanding the us banking system, building/establishing Credit, saving for college, budgeting, establishing savings, eliminating debt, and learning about retirement options. These newly opened grant funded centers, servicing the Atlanta, ga, and miami, fl markets, serviced nearly 900 families in 2016, with more expected in 2017.bankruptcy Counseling & education:clearpoint is authorized by the executive office of us trustees (eoust) to provide conuseling and education, as required by congress, to those filing for personal bankruptcy protection. Clearpoint counselors evaluate each client's personal financial situation, educate clients on alternatives to bankruptcy, and help each client create a personal budget plan that meets his/her financial resources and needs.in pre-discharge bankruptcy education, courses are taught covering such topics as: setting realistic financial goals; how to read your Credit report; obtaining or re-establishing Credit; managing budgets and more. Almost 16,000 individuals were served during 2016 for bankruptcy Counseling and education.
Education and outreachclearpoint conducted over 1,000 in-person education seminars and workshops with 12,777 attendees during 2016. In addition, Clearpoint employees participated in 294 community outreach events, meeting with over 14,742 consumers. Reaching out to groups in the communities we serve, Clearpoint helps clients identify and avoid financial problems and provides guidance on how best to handle these issues. Clearpoint expanded its reach with the online personalized learning program (plp), with 9,621 new registered users completing 2,503 learning modules in 2016. This financial education resource is designed to help consumers enhance their capability 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in a secured online environment.clearpoint's websites were visited by more than 1.1 million users in 2016, including 500,000 pageviews to our blog. Our interactive tools and in-depth articles rank highly in searches on financial topics. Clearpoint's repaydebt.org was redesigned to illustrate the various causes of financial distress and to give consumers a clear picture of their financial options. Clearpoint is active on all major social media networks, engaging consumers and encouraging them to talk about money. Posts to our facebook, twitter, google+, pinterest and yelp profile enjoy thousands of views, likes, comments and shares. Also, our youtube videos were viewed by hundreds of thousands of people. Clearpoint continues to be highly visible via earned media, with over 1,000 broadcasts of media stories in 2016 including phone banks in multiple markets where counselors were on hand to provide advice to consumers. Our online and video tips at bbb.org are visited by thousands of consumers each month. Clearpoint's media and digital marketing teams work closely to maximize exposure online, utilizing third party sites such as nerdwallet and toptenreviews to build recognition and trust.
HOUSING COUNSELING:ONE-ON-ONE COUNSELING PROVIDED TO HELP CONSUMERS UNDERSTAND THE HOMEBUYING PROCESS AND PREPARE TO ACHIEVE AND MAINTAIN HOMEOWNERSHIP. PRE-PURCHASE COUNSELING HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED TO BE AN EFFECTIVE TOOL IN REDUCING FUTURE MORTGAGE DELINQUENCIES AND FORECLOSURES. IN 2016, CLEARPOINT PROVIDED THIS SERVICE TO 3,182 POTENTIAL NEW HOMEOWNERS.EARLY INTERVENTION HOUSING COUNSELINGGOVERNMENT-SPONSORED ENTERPRISE AND MORTGAGE SERVICERS PROVIDE REFERRALS FOR HOMEOWNERS WHO ARE PAST DUE ON THEIR MORTGAGE PAYMENTS. OUTREACH AND COUNSELING ARE PROVIDED AT NO CHARGE TO CONSUMERS WITH THE GOAL OF REACHING HOMEOWNERS TO ASSESS THEIR FINANCIAL SITUATION, PROVIDE COUNSELING AND EDUCATION, AND ASSISTANCE COMMUNICATING WITH THEIR LOAN SERVICERS IF NEEDED BEFORE DELINQUENCY SPIRALS OUT OF CONTROL AND RESULTS IN FORECLOSURE. DURING 2016, OVER 34,000 HOMEOWNERS WERE REFERRED FOR THIS SERVICE.FORECLOSURE PREVENTIONClearPoint STAFF PROVIDE INFORMATION, COUNSELING AND WORK WITH CONSUMERS AND SERVICERS TO HELP HOMEOWNERS AVOID FORECLOSURE AND MAINTAIN HOME OWNERSHIP. DURING 2016, CLEARPOINT ASSISTED OVER 13,600 HOMEOWNERS IN AVOIDING FORECLOSURE.POST-LOAN MODIFICATION COUNSELINGCLEARPOINT COUNSELORS PROVIDE ONGOING FINANCIAL COACHING TO HOMEOWNERS WHO HAVE RECEIVED A LOAN MODIFICATION. HOMEOWNERS ARE REFERRED BY A GOVERNMENT SPONSORED ENTERPRISE OR MORTGAGE SERVICERS. SERVICE IS PROVIDED FREE OF CHARGE TO THE HOMEOWNERS. COUNSELORS MEET WITH THE HOMEOWNER SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE FIRST YEAR OF THE MODIFICATION, HELPING WITH BUDGETING, CREDIT MANAGEMENT AND EDUCATIONAL ADVICE DESIGNED TO ADDRESS ANY LINGERING BUDGETARY ISSUES AND IMPROVE LIKELIHOOD OF SUCCESSFUL HOMEOWNERSHIP GOING FORWARD. OVER 38,000 HOMEOWNERS WERE REFERRED TO CLEARPOINT FOR THIS SERVICE DURING 2016.REVERSE MORTGAGEHECM CERTIFIED COUNSELORS PROVIDE CLEAR, OBJECTIVE ADVICE ABOUT REVERSE MORTGAGE PRODUCTS, COSTS AND FEES AND PERSONAL BUDGETS TO SENIORS, AND OFTEN THE FAMILY MEMBERS ASSISTING THEM, SO THAT THEY MAKE SOUND DECISIONS ON THE EQUITY OF THEIR HOME FOR BOTH THEIR SHORT AND LONG TERM SITUATIONS. IN ADDITION, COUNSLORS PROVIDED GUIDANCE TO SENIORS AT RISK OF FORECLOSURE DUE TO UNPAID PROPERTY TAXES OR INSURANCE ON PROPERTY LEVERAGED BY A REVERSE MORTGAGE. COUNSELORS HELP FIND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND IMPROVE AFFORABILITY, ALLOWING SENIORS TO REPAY DELINQUENCIES AND REMAIN IN THEIR HOME. CLEARPOINT'S COUNSELORS PROVIDED OVER 8,400 REVERSE MORTGAGE AND HECM DEFAULT SESSIONS IN 2016.