LANSING – House Majority Floor Leader Kathy Angerer (D-Dundee) and State Representative Kate Ebli (D-Monroe) today unveiled a plan to keep more Michigan families in their homes by putting a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures for struggling homeowners who seek help.
"When a home goes into foreclosure, we are all affected," Angerer said. "Vacant and blighted properties breed criminal activity that can make our neighborhoods unsafe for our children. Streets lined with foreclosed homes drive down property values and drive away new businesses that we sorely need right now to boost our economy. By keeping families in their homes, we can protect our communities and build a strong economy."
The House Democrats' plan provides a 90-day reprieve from foreclosure for homeowners who commit to working with their lender and a housing counselor to reach a solution. Counselors are available through the Michigan State Housing and Development Authority (MSHDA) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Michigan ranks seventh in the nation for foreclosures, according to RealtyTrac. More than 145,000 properties were in foreclosure in 2008 – a 21 percent increase from 2007 and a 108 percent increase from 2006. In January of this year alone, 11,418 foreclosures were reported in Michigan.
Through November 2008, 3,839 properties in Washtenaw County were in foreclosure, according to RealtyTrac, a 71 percent increase over the first 11 months in 2007. In Monroe County, November alone accounted for some 42 percent of the 338 properties in foreclosure through the first 11 months of 2008.
"Michigan's struggling economy is hurting our working families and making it hard for them to pay their bills and put food on the table every month - let alone pay their mortgage," Ebli said. "During times like these, we need to support our working families more than ever. This plan will give hard-working folks who commit to sitting down with a mortgage counselor and a lender a little extra time to figure things out, and hopefully, avoid losing the homes they have worked so hard for."