"If you are having trouble paying your mortgage, contact your lender or credit counselor. Find out options now – don’t waste another minute."

That’s a new message that tops the Web site, www.hopenow.com, of an alliance created to help ease the massive mortgage issues facing many homeowners. That alliance began a nationwide mail campaign Monday to offer help to those homeowners who may be in trouble.

The Hope Now alliance will mail 300,000 letters before the end of next week. People who receive the letters will be urged to seek information on the options available to avoid defaulting on their mortgages.

"Homeowners can easily find out about relief options that may include repayment plans, changes that can be made to the terms of a loan and other alternatives for which homeowners may be eligible," the letters state, providing a toll-free telephone number, 888-995-HOPE.

The Hope Now alliance is a partnership between mortgage companies and nonprofit housing counselors.

Experts estimate that mortgage defaults could rise to 2 million or more in the coming two years as subprime mortgages reset. Those loans are now resetting from low introductory rates to much higher rates, which can add as much as $250 to $300 to the typical monthly payment.