On the Phone With the Home in The Balance

The report showed several debts, including a $61 balance that had recently been paid off. There were two store credit cards with balances. The biggest debt, aside from the mortgage, was a personal loan for about $13,000.

Etheridge tallied up the monthly income and obligations and concluded that with unemployment benefits, the couple are bringing in $170 more each month than they pay out on bills. "Now that you're getting the unemployment, you're sort of back on track," Etheridge told her.

Etheridge told the woman she may qualify for the grant program, and how to apply online. If she receives a grant, which would be paid directly to her creditors, she would be expected to follow up with quarterly counseling sessions for a year.

Etheridge also gave the woman some homework. "I definitely, definitely, definitely want you to pull your credit report," she said. She told her to tell her mortgage servicer about the layoff. "Let them know what's going on; keep them updated. Also write down the day and time of that call, and who you talked to. You never know if the information might be valuable to you a month from now."

Etheridge explained some other options that would be available should the woman get more seriously behind on her mortgage. Because she has an FHA mortgage, she is eligible for a special FHA program that allows borrowers to take a second mortgage for their missed payments. That debt incurs no interest and does not have to be paid back until they sell the home. "That's something to think about if your husband doesn't find work or his unemployment runs out," Etheridge said.

Not all sessions are as calm as this one was. Some borrowers get emotional; some get angry. Some resist advice that they don't want to hear, such as that they need to ask a spouse to take a paying job. "You make suggestions; they have to be willing to do it," she said.

Just in the past few weeks, she's noticed a big increase in the number of clients who work in the real estate brokerage or lending business. "Sometimes I tell them, 'You should sell your home and downsize,' but they say that in the spring the market's going to change," Etheridge said. "They've been living on credit cards."

The PHASES program is available to borrowers who seek credit counseling from the counseling service or its parent organization, Money Management International. The money is available to people who are in temporary financial trouble because of problems such as unemployment, medical expenses or divorce. A realistic review of their budget must show that they're running in the black, even if just barely. The idea is that this one-time gift will be enough to get them back on track.

The cash comes from a $1 million grant given in July by HSBC North America, one of the biggest banking companies issuing consumer credit cards and other forms of consumer credit, including subprime mortgages.

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Homeowners living in the following states are eligible for the PHASES program : Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia .

To request counseling from Consumer Credit Counseling Services/Money Management International, call 866-889-9347, toll-free.

Homeowners worried about foreclosure should call the Homeownership Preservation Foundation at 888-995-HOPE.

E-mail Elizabeth Razzi atrazzie@washpost.com.