Almost twice as many people dropped out of the government’s mortgage loan modification program in June as those who received permanent modifications, according to the Treasury Department.

There were 91,000 dropouts  in June, which means that 530,000 homeowners have left the mortgage program without a permanent loan modification, reported Reuters. Only 49,000 borrowers received permanent mortgage modifications, for a total of 389,000.

The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) has been criticized for not helping enough homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Treasury Department released the Obama administration’s July housing scorecard this week and acknowledged the challenges with helping homeowners. 

HUD Assistant Secretary Raphael Bostic said in a statement: “The housing market is performing better than the predictions made over a year ago. We’re absolutely not claiming victory, but due to the Obama Administration’s efforts, improved home affordability is continuing to provide opportunities for prospective, qualified, home buyers, while promising neighborhood stabilization efforts are helping hard hit neighborhoods start to recover.”

The housing market is still struggling to recover and the numbers could mean that more foreclosures are on the horizon. If you find yourself struggling to hold on to your home, talk with a housing counselor as soon as possible to discuss your situation. Like many Americans you may not qualify for a permanent mortgage loan modification, but there may be other options that can help your situation.

Pregnancy has a lot of risks associated with it. But other than some of the obvious health issues involved, now your dreams of home ownership could be affected.

Apparently mortgage lenders are giving the thumbs down to parents who are expecting a baby or are on maternity leave when they apply for mortgage loans, according to the New York Times. That’s because mortgage lenders want to see proof that a borrower’s current income is enough to cover mortgage payments.

So if you just had a newborn and are on maternity leave, it’s likely that you won’t qualify for a mortgage even if you plan to return to work soon. Even if you can actually afford to buy a home to accommodate your growing family and are guaranteed a job after a leave, you may be required to provide even more proof of qualifying income and assets than normal.

In some cases, banks are showing new parents to the door and instructing them to apply later when they are back at work. And don’t think that new moms are the only ones being denied. Workers who are on other types of leaves from their jobs and have a drop in income may also be out of luck when applying for a mortgage.

“Maternity leave or any other leave of absence often prevents a person from obtaining a mortgage. There are some who long for the days when such strict proof of income was not required,” John Councilman, president of AMC Mortgage in Fallston, Md., told the New York Times.

Wells Fargo announced that it is shutting down its unit that originates “non-prime portfolio mortgage loans.” The bank also said it plans to lay off about 3,800 workers as it closes the Wells Fargo Financial division.

Wells Fargo said in a statement:

Customers with existing Wells Fargo Financial consumer loans and clients of Wells Fargo Financial’s commercial businesses will continue to be served without distruption, the company said. FHA home loans, auto loans and credit cards previously offered by Wells Fargo Financial will be consolidated with similar products across the company and will be offered through the company’s network of community banking stores, mortgage stores, phone banks and wellsfargo.com. Wells Fargo Financial’s commercial businesses will be realigned with business units within Wells Fargo over the next 12 months. However, Wells Fargo will no longer originate non-prime portfolio real estate loans.

Sub-prime mortgage loans have been a huge contributor to problems with the U.S. housing market. Many borrowers who received sub-prime loans have defaulted, while others are in a continuing never-ending battle to avoid foreclosure and keep their homes.

Sub-prime borrowers have flosked to the government’s loan modification plan in droves to seek assistance, although many have been unsuccessful in their attempts to get help.

Wells Fargo merged with Wachovia in 2008. In the first quarter of 2010 less than 2% of Wells Fargo’s real estate loans originated in Wells Fargo Financial Stores.