CHAI is Assisting Homeowners to Retain Their Homes
by Rochelle C. Eisenberg
Anyone who’s read the news in recent years has been aware of the rising numbers of home foreclosures. Job losses, often followed by underemployment, resulting in lower wages, have made a number of individuals unable to pay their existing mortgages.
It’s a trend that has unfortunately touched homeowners in all communities, including the Baltimore Jewish one. But just because it may be difficult to pay an existing mortgage, doesn’t mean one has to lose one’s home.
In 2009, CHAI: Comprehensive Housing Assistance, Inc., an agency of The Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, introduced its Foreclosure Prevention Initiative, which was initially funded by a grant from Baltimore City. In the four years since its inception, CHAI has assisted more than 600 households with in-person counseling, telephone counseling, and referrals.
The crux of the program is to help those who have hit a rough patch stay in their homes. The organization works with homeowners not only in CHAI’s traditional catchment area of Upper Park Heights – the Glen, Mt. Washington, Cheswolde, Cross Country, and Fallstaff neighborhoods – but also provides foreclosure prevention services to residents living in Pikesville, Owings Mills, and Reisterstown.
“Our goal,” says Mitch Posner, executive director of CHAI, “is to do whatever we can to ensure that homeowners will not lose their properties. Thanks to grants from Baltimore City and the State of Maryland, we have been able to hire an expert to help homeowners navigate this difficult process. We believe it is important for families to stay in their homes, for their own health and wellness, and the stability of our community.”
What to Do If in Danger of Foreclosure
Stephanie Davis, who is the home retention counselor at CHAI, works with clients who have, or are about to, fall behind on their mortgage. Her first piece of advice: Call your lender. “Don’t wait until you receive a “Notice of Intent to Foreclose” (NOI) or a notification of an auction date from the bank, as it may then be too late to save your home,” she says.
When calling your lender, she advises homeowners to speak to a representative in the loss mitigation department. Let them know you are having difficulty. Check with them to see what your options might be and ask them to send a “loss mitigation workout package” immediately.
“One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that individuals expect to get a loan modification for a lower payment because they heard their neighbors had done so,” she adds. “But, unfortunately, every scenario is different, and what you are able to do will depend on the guidelines for your loan.”
The next step is to work with a nonprofit, such as CHAI, that can help navigate an often complicated process. For example, says Davis, who is well-versed in Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, and HUD guidelines, “Lenders can give you the runaround and ask you for documents which may not be required.”
Davis warns homeowners that there are many unscrupulous enterprises that prey on unsuspecting, financially-distressed families. When attempting to prevent foreclosure, work with a nonprofit that offers free assistance.
In addition to modifying a loan, there are other alternatives to foreclosure with which CHAI can help, including listing the home for sale, referring an individual to a bankruptcy lawyer or transitioning the home to rental housing.
Here are a few additional resources for homeowners facing foreclosure:
- Learn about state resources to prevent foreclosure, at mdhope.gov.
- Find out more about President Obama’s Making Home Affordable Program, at www.makinghomeaffordable.gov.
- If you have been a victim of a foreclosure scam, file a complaint with the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, at www.dllr.state.md.us.
- If you are a tenant, read about the Rights of Tenants in foreclosure, at
www.associated.org/local_includes/downloads/47773.pdf.
To learn more, CHAI has established a confidential Home Retention Hot line: 410-500-5310. Stephanie Davis will get back within 48 hours and will meet clients in a confidential location.
