Struggling homeowners seeking help from the Obama administration’s foreclosure prevention program have in many cases had negative experiences, a congressional report said on Thursday.

Three-fourths of the some 400 housing counselors involved in the process characterized borrowers’ overall experience with the housing program as "negative" or "very negative," according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) study.

According to the study, 40 percent of approximately 300 counselors said they had experienced difficulties working with the mortgage servicers and said paperwork had been lost or needed to be resubmitted.

The Treasury Department defended its actions, noting that the survey was conducted in October 2010 before improvements were made.

Treasury also took issue with the parameters of the study and said because there was no readily reliable database of borrowers seeking help, the GAO surveyed housing counselors as a proxy for borrowers.

"The survey results do not characterize borrowers’ actual experiences with, but rather counselors’ interpretations of borrower experiences," the department said in response to the study.

Through the counselors, the survey looked at the borrowers’ experience from the time they first inquired to the point where they received a decision under the program, which offers incentives for lenders to modify loans for distressed homeowners.

The congressional report is the latest criticism of the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), which has so far helped about 670,000 borrowers win lower mortgage payments.

Republican lawmakers have tried to kill program, saying it is ineffective and a waste of taxpayer money. The government watchdog for the $700 billion bank bailout program has also excoriated the Treasury Department for not revising goals.

The administration had initially forecast the program to help 3 million to 4 million homeowners. (Reuters)