Help offered to at-risk homeowners

Free counseling for homeowners threatened by foreclosure is being offered by the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp.

“;Families facing foreclosure are in need of guidance to help them understand their options,”; said Karen Seddon, HHFDC executive director.

HHFDC is partnering with five nonprofit organizations approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and encourages at-risk homeowners to contact one of them.

The organizations:

» Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Hawaii, 532-3225
» Hawaii HomeOwnership Center, 523-9500
» Hawaiian Community Assets, 587-7886
» Legal Aid Society of Hawaii at 536-4302 on Oahu or (800) 499-4302 on the neighbor islands
» Hale Mahaolu on Maui at 872-4100

Tips for avoiding foreclosure rescue scams can be found online from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency at http://www.hsblinks.com/17b.

Tetris entrepreneur to speak

Henk Rogers will present “;How to succeed as an IT professional in Hawaii”; to the Hawaii chapter of the Association of Information Technology Professionals from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday at the Plaza Club.

Rogers is the Hawaii-based businessman who brought the video game “;Tetris”; to world markets. He also founded the environmental nonprofit Blue Planet Foundation and serves as its chairman.

The cost is $20 for members and $30 for nonmembers, while late registrants or walk-ins will pay $35. Registration can be completed online at events.aitphawaii.org.

Coming Up

» Today: Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. releases third-quarter financial results.

» Tomorrow: Labor Department releases job openings and labor turnover survey for September.

» Wednesday: Veterans Day, bond markets closed. Macy's Inc. releases third-quarter financial results.

» Thursday: Labor Department releases weekly jobless claim. Freddie Mac releases weekly mortgage rates. Nordstrom Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. release third-quarter financial results. Walt Disney Co. releases fourth-quarter financial results.

» Friday: Abercrombie & Fitch Co. and J.C. Penny Co. release third-quarter financial results.