Weighing the Evidence of the Effectiveness of Counseling and Education for Home Owners

Pre-purchase Homeownership Counseling As of mid-2010, there were seven evaluations that analyze pre-purchase homeownership counseling. Six of these evaluations are quasi-experiments (which compare outcomes between a treatment group and a non-random comparison group), and one evaluation is descriptive (lacking any form or comparison group). While six of the evaluations measure loan outcomes, one evaluation measures selfreported behaviors. Three studies specifically evaluate one-on-one counseling alone, one study analyzes classroom and one-on-one services, and then two studies analyze counseling delivered via four common channels: one-on-one, telephone, home study, and classroom. All the studies reviewed associate pre-purchase homeownership counseling to positive outcomes for mortgage borrowers.