Grant To Check Foreclosures

November 29th, 2007 | Tags: Foreclosures

Kalamazoo is badly affected by foreclosures. To counter the menace Kalamazoo Neighborhood Housing Services, 802 S Westnedge Avenue, has sanctioned a grant of $15,000 from State Farm Insurance. The plan is to finance its education programmes under the aegis of its own Homeownership Centre. The focus will be on foreclosure and necessary help for it. An additional grant of $500 was sanctioned in recognition of the exemplary voluntary services rendered by agent of State Farm and board member of KNHS, Troy Weldon.

Mark Odland, Vice President of Operations says that State Farm is dedicated to the welfare of the communities that live and work here. The well-being and development of the community is intertwined with the lives of the residents. Therefore the onus is on the community organization to see that the people’s dream of owning a house is not shattered by the reality of foreclosures.

The grant has brought a smile on the faces of many like Sharilynn Parsons. She approached KNHS for advice. The organization does not charge any fee. They quickly responded with a grant of $15,000 and gave her time to breathe and live another day to fight the foreclosure enemy.

The bottom line is that borrowers realize the implications of the time factor. Delay can make the matter irreversible. The earlier they knock for help the better survival chances they have to avoid foreclosures. Counseling on foreclosures is done individually with each person. The number of help seekers is continually on the rise. The main functions and objectives of KNHS are twofold – containing foreclosures and the quality of the neighbourhood. One is interlinked to the other.

The sub-prime mortgage loans were given to those who could not qualify for the prime traditional loans because of low income and bad credit. The objective was to give everyone a chance to realize the American dream of owning a house. Unfortunately predatory lending, goaded by commissions and speculation drives of investors coupled with ignorance of the borrowers led to this foreclosure debacle. As floating interest rates began to rise, not just thousands but also millions of houses fell into the foreclosure zone. This led to the down slump in the real estate market whose chain reaction began to tell on the general economy. It badly affected society also because abandoned houses invited vagrants, looters, drug peddlers and nefarious activities of all kinds. All have begun to drown.

Search Images:

Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.