Dollars & Sense: Renters In the Crosshairs

from Dollars & Sense:



Renters In the Crosshairs
Community organizers are fighting for renters facing eviction because of foreclosure.

By Daniel Fireside


The United States is in the midst of a national foreclosure crisis that threatens to wreak havoc not just on homeowners, but also tenants, urban neighborhoods, and entire cities. Community organizers and legal activists are working hard to stop it.

Over 2 million properties went into foreclosure proceedings last year, a number that experts fear could jump to 10 million in the next few years. Foreclosures aren’t just pushing owners into the street. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, renters make up an estimated 40% of families facing eviction because of foreclosure. And because the shakiest loans are concentrated in inner cities, the impact of vacant buildings on already fragile neighborhoods can be devastating.

Lenders and lawmakers have been slow to respond to this growing crisis. The Obama administration’s mortgage rescue plan announced in February offers limited help to some individual homeowners at risk of foreclosure, but almost completely overlooks the plight of renters in foreclosed buildings. Families facing eviction are left to fend for themselves, often with little understanding of their legal rights or other options. But an array of community organizers and legal advocates have been pushing back—organizing tenants, pressuring policymakers and lenders, and throwing wrenches into the legal system.

Steve Meacham, a tenant organizer with City Life/Vida Urbana, a Boston-based social-justice organization, has been on the front lines of the foreclosure battle. Traditionally, CL/VU had mainly organized tenants facing eviction into unions in order to negotiate with landlords. “About a year ago, we noticed something strange,” explains Meacham. “Most of the evictions were being pushed by the banks and lenders.” ........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2009/0309fireside.html

such as heating or water that is included in the rent the tenants can pay their rent directly to which ever company that is owed to stop shut off, I do not see why the same can not be applied to foreclosure

ETA for some neighborhoods this could be a "boon" of sorts because it would turn rental properties into coops and save the former landlords from having a foreclosure on their credit records

the full balance of the monthly mortgage payment.

You'd think the banks would prefer some payment to none, but no, banks prefer to forclose. they actually make more money that way.

which is questionable at best in this economy and it is a better alternative to vacant buildings and possibly more homeless people.

the option of paying whatever the monthly mortgage is to the lender. There's a glut of inventory in houses. You'd think the lenders would want to get something out of the deal. I know, they're not landlords, but why not?