HAMP Mortgage Modification Program Still No Help

The Obama administration announced more disappointing numbers for its signature anti-foreclosure initiative and said Thursday that it would continue to withhold payments from two banks running the program.

Just 14,000 homeowners received trial modifications under the Home Affordable Modification Program in July, the fewest of any month since shortly after the program's launch early in 2009. The previous low came in June. (The Treasury Department, which oversees HAMP, said 22,079 modifications in total have been reported since the June numbers came out, but some of those modifications happened in previous months.)