WASHINGTON (AP) — The government’s consumer lending watchdog finalized new rules today aimed at protecting homeowners from shoddy service and unexpected fees charged by companies that collect their monthly mortgage payments.

Mortgage servicing companies will be required to provide clear monthly billing statements, warn borrowers before interest rate hikes and actively help them avoid foreclosure, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said. The rules also require companies to credit people’s payments promptly, swiftly correct errors and keep better internal records.

In a departure from proposed rules released in August, the agency said that mortgage companies will not be allowed to seek foreclosure on a person’s home while that person is trying to arrange lower monthly payments or otherwise avoid losing the home. The change will end the practice of “dual-tracking” — pushing a borrower into foreclosure while discussing a loan modification with that borrower.

The rules “will provide a fairer and more effective process for troubled borrowers who face the potential loss of their homes,” CFPB Director Richard Cordray said in remarks prepared for a public event in Atlanta today.

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