A new mortgage rule aims to speed up changes and delay foreclosures.

Federal officials on Monday finalized a rule designed to slow what they feared an impending wave of pandemic-related foreclosures by making it easier for lenders to adjust borrowers’ loan terms and by creating additional hurdles. before lenders can seize homes.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said about 3 percent of home mortgage borrowers are now at least four months behind schedule, the point at which most foreclosure processes are allowed to begin.

We’ve never seen so many borrowers so far behind on their mortgages, said Dave Uejio, the agencies’ acting director.

Federal moratoriums on evictions and evictions have kept most delinquent homeowners in place since March, but those protections will end on July 31. the new consumer agency rulebureau, which comes into effect on August 31 and will be extended until the end of the year, mortgage managers generally will not be able to initiate foreclosure proceedings unless they have adhered to stricter rules.

In most cases, lenders are only allowed to seize a home if it is vacated, if the borrower has not responded to messages for at least 90 days, or if the borrower has been formally assessed for all available loss mitigation options (such as a loan modification) and none are viable.

Servicers may also execute foreclosures on borrowers who were 120 or more days past due prior to March 1, 2020.

The new rule also allows mortgage lenders to more easily offer some loan modifications, as long as the changes don’t increase a borrower’s monthly payments or extend the loan term more than 40 years from the modification date.

The rule is considerably softer than a consumer agency proposal in April, which would have banned most foreclosure requests for the rest of the year. Mr Uejio described the agencies’ revised approach as one that would encourage a measured return to forced sales.

Pete Mills, the senior vice president of housing policy for the Mortgage Bankers’ Association, said the bureau rule was generally reasonable and incorporated changes the industry had sought, such as the exception allowing foreclosures on abandoned properties to proceed.

In many cases, administrators are already going well beyond the minimum requirements in the rules to reach borrowers, said Mr. Mills.

There will be a month-long period between the end of the federal moratorium and the date the new consumer bureau rule comes into effect, but lenders will still have to make a good faith effort to contract borrowers and explore alternatives before switching. going to a foreclosure, agency officials said during a conversation with reporters.

Diane Thompson, a senior adviser at the agency, said the agency’s goal was to manage avoidable foreclosures and give people time to consider their choices, including resuming payments, changing their loan or selling their home.

For those who haven’t made payments since the pandemic, it’s important to understand that you need to come up with a plan to address that in the not-too-distant future, Ms. Thompson said. People should assess their options.