JPMorgan Chase Strongly Supports Detailed Mortgage Modification Plan

NEW YORK, March 4, 2009 - JPMorgan Chase announced today that it strongly supports the Administration's mortgage modification program, as detailed today.

"This builds on the efforts we have already implemented and extends them to more struggling homeowners and provides us and other servicers more options to keep families in their homes," said Jamie Dimon, Chief Executive Officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co. "The plan appropriately balances the interest of homeowners, mortgage servicers and investors. As a result, more families will be helped with long-term and sustainable solutions through a consistent process, including a verification of income."

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We support the program because:

* The guidelines establish a clear, fair and consistent set of standards for all servicers to follow.
* It is intended for the right borrowers: those with mortgages below $729,750.
* All borrowers must fully document their income.
* All borrowers must clearly demonstrate financial hardship.
* It covers verified owner-occupied homes only.
* The owners of the mortgages will be confident that servicers will follow owners' best economic interests in making modifications.

"JPMorgan Chase believes that this program, along with the fiscal stimulus plan and the TALF program, are all strong steps to improve both the economy and the financial system and to help those who are deserving and in need of assistance," Dimon said.

"There is no silver bullet," he said. "The thoughtful and rapid roll-out of various programs is the only intelligent way to begin to solve these problems. These mortgage modifications are economically and morally the right thing to do for individual customers. It is the respectful way in which we all would want to be treated. We will work hard to incorporate the new criteria into our own loan modification process to quickly help customers, and we urge all to participate in this plan as soon as possible."

"This program maintains the essential principle that individuals, businesses and corporations should pay their loans if they can afford to do so," Dimon said. "We believe this program's completeness eliminates the need for judicial modification in bankruptcy, but if legislated, judicial modifications should be consistent with this plan and only for borrowers who couldn't qualify or were not offered a modification."

"Extraordinary times need extraordinary measures. It is time to implement this program - even if it's not perfect in everyone's view - and move on," Dimon said.

Source: JPMorgan Chase