Nothing Settled For One Homeowner Weeks After Mortgage Settlement Announced

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - More than a month ago the attorney general announced struggling homeowners would get some help from an $18 billion mortgage settlement, but the excitement soon turned to irritation for at least one Sacramento homeowner.

"We negotiated and held out to make sure that there would be a commitment that was specific to California and be enforceful," Harris said after the settlement announcement.

They were words of hope for thousands of struggling homeowners in California - such as Clarice Wagner.

"It's been more than a month February 9 to be exact," she says.

Six weeks ago the attorney general proudly announced she'd secured that $18 billion in a landmark settlement for our state. The attorney general's spokesperson told CBS13 that if homeowners wanted more information, they should simply call their banks.

That's exactly what Clarice did hours after the announcement. And a few times after that. And each time what's the answer? "We don't have an answer yet," she says.

So we called the attorney general's office looking for an answer. Despite repeated requests for an interview, the press office didn't return our calls.

But we found this: if you go to nationalmortgagesettlement.com, it says borrowers won't know right away if they're eligible for the settlement. There's also a timeline that says it could take up to nine months to identify qualified homeowners.

And it could take up to three years for anyone to finally get the help they desperately need.

"But I figure why even put it out there if you're not going to have an answer, because, sure, people are going to start calling," Clarice says.