Mortgage Foreclosure & Refinance Resource

A group of mortgage lenders and non-profit organizations have pledged $4.6 million to allow foreclosure prevention counseling agencies in California to hire more staff to deal with strong demand from struggling homeowners, the companies said Monday.

Mortgage counseling agencies statewide can apply for funds from the two-year spending program, dubbed the California Home Ownership Preservation Initiative, said Alan Fisher of the California Reinvestment Coalition.

The San Francisco-based organization raised the money from lenders Merrill Lynch, HSBC North America, Wachovia, Comerica, Wells Fargo, Countrywide, Citi, Bank of America and non-profits San Francisco Foundation and Los Angeles-based California Community Foundation.