Government suspending some foreclosures in Northeast because of Sandy

A man surveys a flooded street on October 30, 2012, in Ocean City, N.J. / Mark Wilson/Getty Images

WASHINGTON The government is suspending foreclosures in Rhode Island on some federally insured mortgages because of Superstorm Sandy, the latest state to receive a 90-day moratorium.

The Federal Housing Administration has already suspended foreclosures in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. The FHA, which is part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, insures mortgages for low- and middle-income borrowers.

HUD announced Monday that the moratorium also will apply to homeowners in Rhode Island affected by the storm. President Barack Obama issued a disaster declaration Saturday for Bristol, Newport and Washington counties in the state.