After years of trying to negotiate with JP Morgan Chase, Sergio and Jonathan Ceballos got a 24-hour notice to vacate yesterday from the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Department. JPMorgan Chase Bank fought hard for the small house in South Minneapolis, dual-tracking the Ceballos family and rushing them through eviction court. Now, our public servants are tasked with carrying out the banks’ final order: forcefully evict the Ceballos family.

But what if the sheriffs refused to carry out the order? The only crime Sergio Ceballos has committed is staying in his home, which he is able and willing to pay for. He’s a valued member of a community devastated by the foreclosure crisis. His would be the third vacant house on the block. If law enforcement officials ignored banks’ order to evict, it would literally make the community stronger, more stable and less prone to crime, if the sheriffs refused to enforce this law on this family.

Last year, during the Cruz house eviction, Hennepin County and the city of Minneapolis spent over $40,000 of taxpayer money defending the home for Freddie Mac--only to let it sit empty for a year. Occupy Homes has consistently called for an end to public resources to evict families in foreclosure, citing the numerous cases of illegal and fraudulent practices committed by the big banks. Some say there’s no alternative, but the truth is that using public servants for unjust evictions is far from inevitable.

There are important examples Hennepin County could look to for guidance. In 2009, in Wayne County (surrounding Detroit) and Cook County (surrounding Chicago), facing immense pressure from communities outraged by Wall Street’s policies, sheriffs refused to carry out evictions on families whose lenders committed fraud during the excesses of the housing bubble.

In reference to his decision to stop carrying out evictions, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart stated, "We will no longer be a party to something that's so unjust. We have to be sure that when we are doing this--and we are destroying some people's lives--we better be darned sure we're talking about the right people."

If Hennepin County Sheriffs and the Minneapolis Police Department sided with the communities they “protect and serve” and refused to carry out evictions on families attempting to negotiate loan modifications with their banks, it would create a de facto foreclosure moratorium. This would provide the opportunity for residents facing foreclosure to organize a broad political movement for housing justice, without facing law enforcement kicking down the door.

Unfortunately Hennepin County officials refuse to acknowledge their role in the foreclosure crisis, even though they auction houses and carry out evictions. Banks routinely refuse to work with families who want to negotiate - who are able to pay market value for their homes - or string them along in a deceptive process called “dual tracking.” The foreclosure process goes ahead, and our law enforcement resources eventually become a taxpayer funded enforcement wing for the very Wall Street banks that are undermining the stability of our communities. Isolated stands by individual sheriffs are not a winning strategy against Wall Street banks, but these sheriffs’ efforts to intervene in the housing crisis give community-based housing justice movements an important tool. At the very least, it can take away an important tool from the banks.

Hennepin County and the City of Minneapolis constantly site the need to “enforce the law” as an excuse to continue carrying out evictions. This reflects an elementary understanding of the legal system. How energetically laws are enforced and crimes are investigated is a question of priorities. Wall Street banks commit the crime of defrauding millions, and get away with it; families commit the crime of wanting to stay in their house, and risk officers kicking in their door.
In any society, laws reflect the values of those in power. If Hennepin County Sheriffs or Minneapolis Police Officers evict the Ceballos family, they can give many reasons for why they did it, but they can never claim it was an act of justice.

Last edited Fri Jul 12, 2013, 08:41 PM - Edit history (1)

They are real roll models for everyone IMO.

Thanks.



http://www.occupyhomesmn.org/national_day_of_action_against_chase_bank

I drive hope past a corner and the decrative iron fence is covered in banners, and Stop foreclosure signs.
the banner says "foreclosure free zone" it is a couple blocks from Sergio's home.

just some updates on the Occupy Homes MN site.. people need to know that foreclosures and evictions are still going on and they are still crafty.

“I have offered to pay them three times the normal payments to get caught up,” said Nafeesah. “When I talked to the lawyer, he told me frankly, ‘they don’t want your monthly payments, they want to flip your home.’”

http://www.occupyhomesmn.org/northern_value_llc_evicting_mpls_family_from_home_of_25_years_for_delinquent_83_month_contract_for_deed_payment


A housing court judge ruled Thursday that Nafeesah Abdullah McReynolds-El could be evicted by the contract-for-deed company that owns her home--even though she had been told her sheriff sale was delayed until January 2014. Nafeesah faces a summary judgment hearing Tuesday, and after that could be evicted in as little as 24 hours.

After a medical condition forced Nafeesah Abdullah McReynolds-El to cut back on work, she struggled to make ends meet, sometimes delaying medical treatments or doctors appointments in order to pay the bills. The family survived in this precarious condition, from time to time running into problems with the mortgage company or back taxes with the city, until Nafeesah’s husband lost his full-time job and the family slid into foreclosure.

Since working with Occupy Homes MN, Nafeesah’s lender, Midlands Mortgage, delayed her sheriff’s sale until January 2014 to enter into negotiations with the family. Nafeesah could afford to pay for her home if the mortgage company lowered her monthly payments. Thinking things were starting to get better, Nafeesah was shocked when she received an eviction summons because of delinquent payments on her contract for deed.

For twenty years, Nafeesah wrote two checks: one to the mortgage company and one to a third party owner of a contract for deed. When the mortgage company stopped taking payments, which is standard process during a foreclosure, Nafeesah stopped paying her contract for deed as well. She intended to work out a payment plan with the contract for deed owner, who had personal connections to the family.

During this time, the contract for deed on Nafeesah’s home was sold to Northern Value Group, LLC. Nafeesah only owed around $8,000 on the contract; she was about $2,000 behind. Northern Value LLC immediately terminated the contract-for-deed, and prepared to evict Nafeesah and her family. Unlike foreclosures, a contract-for-deed has a two-month redemption period, meaning Nafeesah needed to hand Northern Value Group $8,000 cash virtually on the spot. Northern Value LLC never offered Nafeesah the option to make reasonable payments on the contract.



“I have offered to pay them three times the normal payments to get caught up,” said Nafeesah. “When I talked to the lawyer, he told me frankly, ‘they don’t want your monthly payments, they want to flip your home.’” On Thursday, a Hennepin County judge confirmed that Northern Value LLC had the right to carry forward with an eviction. When Nafeesah goes to court on Tuesday, she could be ordered to leave her home that day.

Contract for deed agreements have a notorious and dubious history as being an efficient vehicle to swindle poor people out of their homes. “I know from Minnetonka, where their office is located, Northern Value LLC might think my neighbors’ homes in South Minneapolis are real estate gambling chips, but they’re mistaken,” said Occupy Homes organizer, local elementary school teacher, and neighbor Chris Gray. “I’m tired of seeing gentrification rip apart the fabric my community, people of color kicked out so faceless rental agencies from wealthy suburbs thinking they can run venture-capitalist real estate schemes in my community.”

Nafeesah is ready and willing to make increased payments to pay off the contract for deed while she is negotiating with her mortgage company to get a modification. “I live in the Eviction Free Zone, where nine homeowners facing foreclosure are organizing neighbors to fight for our community’s right to have a say in what happens to our homes,” said Nafeesah, “Northland Value LLC bet on the wrong horse. They saw a free lunch. They were wrong. I’m not moving, and hundreds of my neighbors stand with me.”