Alarmed by the high rate of foreclosures in a number of states, a consortium of mortgage bankers and community development organizations has initiated a public service campaign aimed at getting help for at-risk borrowers.

The organizations include the Mortgage Bankers Association, NeighborWorks America and the Ad Council.

"The key message is that people should call their servicer as soon as they sense there is a problem," said Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Jonathan L. Kempner. "It's counterintuitive to do this. When you are young and you owe your brother or sister money, the last thing you do is go up to them and talk about it."

Mortgage lenders are successful if borrowers are successful. The last thing a bank wants to do is take back a home and have to take a loss, he added.

"We believe this is in the best interest of everyone," he said.

While efforts to educate homeowners in default have existed before this latest national push, there was little awareness on the part of borrowers.

But news reports on foreclosures, driven in large part by the explosion of subprime loans, have made community organizations and lenders aware that they need to do a better job of reaching out to borrowers who are in trouble.

Bargain Network, which tracks foreclosure data, indicated that one in every 877 households nationwide was in foreclosure in June.

Willie Al Thomas was nearly one of them. He should have been well on his way to paying off the brick bungalow he bought for $23,000 in 1977.

But several years ago, he needed money to pay for his children's college education and for some of his own bills. Because his house in Detroit had dramatically increased in value, he took out a home equity loan for $121,000.

Thomas, 59, refinanced several times after that, but in March, his loan began to unravel. He was unable to keep up with a payment that ballooned from $767 in February to $1,786 in March, and the loan provider — Texas-based Litton Loan Servicing LP — began proceedings to foreclose on his home in June.

Two days before a Wayne County sheriff's sale that might have forever separated Thomas from his home, he was able to salvage his house when he met Carmen Fernandez, a foreclosure prevention counselor at Southwest Housing Solutions in Detroit, an organization that's affiliated with NeighborWorks, a partner in the foreclosure avoidance campaign.

Fernandez's job is to act as a third party between lenders and borrowers. She talks to borrowers and determines whether she can help before she gets the ball rolling. Since NeighborWorks America's national hot line — 888-995-4673 — was activated this summer, it has gotten more than 1,000 calls a day.

"It helps to have that third person there," she said. "I help remove the emotions. I'm working for the client and help the best I can. Many times, they're upset and don't understand what the lender is talking about. I'm able to explain to the lender what the client can do, and I can explain to the client how the lender is able to help them."

In Thomas' case, his latest mortgage hadn't set up an escrow account for his property taxes. The mortgage company paid the bill, then sent Thomas a notice for $1,786 to cover the taxes. Although he was given four months to pay, his veteran's fixed income of $1,500 a month made the plan unaffordable.

"The bank then worked out another plan for $1,453 a month," Fernandez said. The plan included the taxes he owed and extended the payments over a longer period. "He and I both knew that he still would be unable to afford that."

Eventually, Fernandez was able to get Thomas into a 30-year loan with a rate of 6.375 percent and payments under $1,200 a month, including taxes in an escrow account. This plan added the taxes to the principal and extended payments over the life of the loan.

"She was extremely patient," Thomas said. "And she was persistent and stayed on top of the bank rep to keep focusing in on the direction it should be taken."