Just one in four of the 2.7 million homeowners who sought to participate in the Obama administration’s signature mortgage assistance program have succeeded in getting their monthly payments reduced.

The rest failed to qualify for the program or were disqualified after they were initially accepted into the program, according to an analysis by the Wall Street Journal of data on applicants to the program newly released by the Treasury Department.

In all, about 680,000 homeowners who applied for the Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP, had received permanent modifications of their loans and were making timely payments or were still in the trial phase as of December.

Almost 6.7 million U.S. homes were lost to foreclosure, short sales or turned back to lenders between 2000 and 2010, according to Moody’s Analytics. Another 3.6 million could meet the same fate through 2013.

The White House launched the HAMP program in 2009 as a broad attempt to reverse the rising number of home foreclosures by reducing families’ mortgage payments, typically by lowering the interest rate and extending the term of a loan. But the administration’s strict eligibility criteria resulted in far lower participation than expected.

This translated into a smaller cost to taxpayers. Two years ago, the Obama administration said as much as $75 billion would be needed for HAMP. About $1 billion has been spent so far.

The program has faced sharp criticism. Neil Barofsky, the departing special inspector general overseeing the program, has faulted the administration for launching it with inadequate analysis and only partially developed guidelines. This led to delays and confusion, and the program “continues to fall short of any meaningful standard of success,” he said a report released in January.

House Republicans have called the program a waste of money and are considering a bill this week to end the program. “In an era of record-breaking deficits, it’s time to pull the plug on these programs that are actually doing more harm than good for struggling homeowners,” Rep. Spencer Bachus (R., Ala.) said last week.

READ MORE: WSJ

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