Distressed homeowners in the Sacramento region have a new advocate in their corner: Fannie Mae.

The government-backed mortgage giant opened a new Mortgage Help Center in Natomas about a month ago to provide counseling for owners facing the prospect of foreclosure and seeking to modify their home loans.

The Sacramento office is one of 10 that Fannie Mae has opened nationwide in the last year to serve areas hardest hit by the real estate downturn.

The service is available only for homeowners with Fannie Mae loans, but demand is expected to be brisk given that the agency is the largest owner of mortgages in the Sacramento area.

"It's very important for every borrower that can afford it to get the opportunity to avoid foreclosure," said Jeff Hayward, senior vice president at Fannie Mae.

The center is a partnership with Sacramento's NeighborWorks HomeOwnership Center, which provides the staffing for the nine-person office.

NeighborWorks also will lend its expertise in a real estate market in which 67,500 local homeowners – or 8.5 percent of the households in the four-county Sacramento region – have lost their homes through foreclosure.

Fannie Mae, in turn, brings its tremendous clout in the foreclosure process. The lending giant is controlled by the federal government, which stepped in after Fannie Mae sustained huge losses because of loans that went bad.

As the owner of the loans, Fannie Mae will work directly with the mortgage servicing companies on a homeowner's request for a loan modification or other workout plan.

Unlike private banks, which can take nine months to a year before they decide to approve or reject a modification request, Hayward said the new center hopes to get an answer in 30 days.

Andrew Wilson, Fannie Mae's spokesman, said that since the quasi-governmental entity opened its first mortgage center in February 2010, it has helped about 10,000 homeowners. About two-thirds of those owners have been able to remain in their homes, and a good portion of the rest worked out a short sale or other exit strategy, he said.

"The customer may not get the loan modification they seek … at least they will get an answer quicker, and that's half the battle," said Pam Canada, NeighborWorks' CEO.

Fannie Mae will hold an open house for the center on Thursday. Counseling sessions are by appointment only. Call (866) 442-9374 to set up a time.

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