Date of Award:

5-2006

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Human Development and Family Studies

Department name when degree awarded

Family, Consumer, and Human Development

Committee Chair(s)

Lucy Delgadillo

Committee

Lucy Delgadillo

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to create a profile of the mortgage default clientele at the Utah State University Family Life Center, Housing and Financial Counseling (FLC HFC) and to examine how clientele were utilizing the counseling services. Demographic and mortgage variables were used to create the profile of clientele and examine the utilization of services. Specific variables key to the study included: loan type, time of delinquency when clients sought counseling, how clients were referred to the FLC HFC, and the point in counseling when an outcome was achieved (keeping the home or losing the home to foreclosure). The sample consisted of all closed mortgage default cases at the FLC HFC (N = 213) and covered the years between July 1999 and September 2004. Descriptive statistics were used to create a profile of clients and survival analysis was used to examine the utilization of services.

Clientele were on average 36 years old, married, had 2.3 dependents, and were Caucasian. The majority of clientele had no savings, was behind on other debt, reported a reduction in income or job loss as the cause of default, and sought counseling early on in the delinquency. Clients reaching an outcome of counseling in one to four appointments were statistically significantly different than those reaching an outcome in five or more appointments.

In the context of survival analysis, clients were divided into three groups: survival (positive outcome of counseling), foreclosure/bankruptcy (negative outcome of counseling), or lost-to-follow up. The findings indicate that clientele with government loans use the services more than clientele with conventional loans. Among the clientele who kept their home, there were no statistically significant differences by loan type. The FLC HFC can use this information to better tailor the services offered to mortgage default clientele.

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