Aid on the Horizon for Distressed Homeowners
Foreclosures are clustered in parts of Bucks County, but all municipalities are affected.
By Jenna Portnoy, Staff Writer, Bucks County Courier Times 3/1/2009
Help is on the way for Bucks County residents at risk of losing their homes to foreclosure
Several organizations are joining forces to create a county mortgage foreclosure diversionary program, which would mandate mediation between the lender and resident at the onset of the foreclosure process.
"Now, once a mortgage foreclosure is filed, unless a homeowner stops it through the legal process, meaning they get a lawyer and fight it that way-the lender can just proceed," said Barbara Lyons, an attorney working to set up the program on behalf of the Bucks County Bar Association.
Funding sources are still being lined up, but some details have been established.
When foreclosure notices are sent to residents, the notice will include a phone number to connect them with Legal Aid of Southeastern Pennsylvania. The organization will provide a triage role to determine what services would fit the resident's needs, said co-executive director Liz Fritsch.
Legal Aid already has a help line staffed by an attorney and paralegal "who have a lot of experience with reading and interpreting various legal documents,"Fritsch said. "They're very familiar with the assistance programs that are out there."
If a caller fits Legal Aid's income eligibility guidelines, it may be able to help. If not, the case would be referred to county court administration. There a staff person will schedule a mediation session with the resident, a volunteer attorney and the lender, which is typically a bank.
Legal Aid will also train attorney mediators at the end of March and the program could begin as early as April, said Lyons, who is also a Doylestown Township supervisor.
Court administrator Doug Praul said until funding is set up, county Judge Isaac Garb will conduct mediation sessions.
Last week the county put in a request with Congressman Patrick Murphy for a federal earmark to fund the first year at $100,000. A request was also made to the state Department of Community and Economic Development through state Rep. Marguerite Quinn's Bucks County office, according to Lyons.
The money would pay for a staff person at Legal Aid and one in court administration, as well as office equipment, she said. Another $138,000 would be donated in the form of volunteer attorney hours and office space at Legal Aid in Bristol and at the Bar Association and the courthouse, both in Doylestown.
"We have attorneys ready to go and train and eager to help with this process," said Lyons, who set up a mediation program for civil actions in Bucks about eight years ago. "Only the court can stop a (foreclosure) proceeding; that's why this is necessary."
Philadelphia's foreclosure program resolved about one-third of actions filed in the city in a given time period. Realistically, she said, Bucks County can hope for a success rate of 50 percent.
While foreclosures seem to be clustered in some parts of the county, every municipality is affected. And the numbers are on the rise.
According to figures compiled by the prothonotary's office, foreclosure filings have increased from a monthly average of 95 in 2006 to 124 in 2007 and 148 last year. So far this year, there have been 262 filings. Last year, there was a spike of more than 60 filings between February and March, data show.
President Barack Obama last week announced a plan that could help up to 9 million homeowners refinance their mortgages or avoid foreclosure. The plan, which the New York Times reported could cost taxpayers as much as $275 billion, would allocate $75 billion to keep people in their homes and the rest in additional financial backing for government-controlled lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Fritsch of Legal Aid said federal dollars are welcome, although they have yet to trickle down to residents in crisis.