BMO Harris Bank Affirms Commitment to Chicago Homeowners

Dave Casper, U.S. CEO, BMO Financial Group, recently joined Mayor Lori Lightfoot for a press conference to announce that BMO has signed the Mayor’s Chicago Solidarity Pledge, an initiative designed to bring the city’s lenders and landlords together to address the unprecedented housing challenge that Chicagoans face as a result of the pandemic.

By signing the pledge, we affirmed that BMO will offer hardship measures for eligible mortgage borrowers including:

• Mortgage payment deferrals
• Waivers for mortgage-related late fees
• Suspension of foreclosures
• Neutral reporting to credit agencies for borrowers taking advantage of COVID-19 related relief

“We’ve been part of the community here in Chicago for over 160 years, and being part of the community means being part of the solution,” said Dave. “We take that charge seriously, and we’ll continue to play an active role as we support our clients during this unprecedented time.”

“Our bold, data-driven response to the COVID-19 virus has already yielded important gains to our public health, but it has also come with additional costs that are being borne out by those least able to afford them,” said Mayor Lightfoot. “The Chicago Housing Solidarity Pledge represents our city’s shared commitment to our residents and building owners alike whose homes and livelihoods have come under threat as a result of this crisis, and I am extremely proud that renters, landlords, homeowners, and lenders have all come to the table to work in partnership for our city and develop a solution to our shared problem.”

BMO continues to offer additional relief to consumers and small businesses, including payment deferrals on credit cards, home equity, auto, personal and small business loans, fee waivers for checking and savings accounts and removal of penalties associated with early CD withdrawal.

To date, BMO has fulfilled hardship requests for more than 20,000 customers, granting deferrals for $1 billion in loans to families and individuals. BMO also secured SBA approval for $4.4 billion in total funding for more than 10,000 borrowers during the first round of SBA PPP funding.

The latest information on relief programs can be found on the bank’s COVID-19 webpage, and customers in need can use BMO’s online relief form to request assistance.