TWO EVENTS COME TO DETROIT ON THE SAME DAY DEALING WITH FORECLOSURES, AND PRE-FORECLOSURES IN MICHIGAN ONE FOR MAYORS FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY AND ONE PUBLIC, REAL ESTATE AGENTS, INVESTORS, AND HOME OWNERS IN TROUBLE.
A FREE EVENT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, REALTORS AND INVESTORS AT CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL BY METRO AIRPORT. SEE http://www.megaeveningevent.com/ FOR ALL DETAILS
PLUS FOLLOWING REPUBLISHED ARTICLE BY RALPH MARCUS MAUPIN AND ART DANNIELS FROM THE FREE PRESS ON MAYORS CONFRONTING HOUSING BUBBLE:
Mayors to confront foreclosures
Meeting in Detroit to study growing crisis
November 20, 2007
BY ZACHARY GORCHOW
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
The foreclosed house next door to Kristi Katsma's home in Detroit 's Indian Village symbolizes the potential rot the foreclosure crisis creates for neighborhoods.
After it was broken into repeatedly and stripped of copper pipes and architectural elements, residents have banded together to help the house on Seminole, setting up a security system and caring for the yard in hopes of protecting their neighborhood's character.
"In part, we're doing this to safeguard our investment," said Katsma, 37. "The longer a house is empty, the more it's in disrepair and the greater a chance that it's going to get broken into."
With thousands of such foreclosed homes eating away at Detroit 's neighborhoods, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick will announce today that several mayors from across the country will convene in Detroit next week to brainstorm ways to confront a crisis plaguing communities everywhere.
Kilpatrick, who heads up the committee that handles the foreclosure issue for the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said the foreclosure crisis is hammering the city in many ways -- from morale in stable communities now stuck with vacant homes to having fewer homeowners who have less equity.
"It's never been to the degree that this is happening," Kilpatrick told the Free Press. "The foreclosure issue is the single-biggest economic issue that we have to overcome in the city of Detroit."
Among the mayors coming to Detroit will be those from Trenton, N.J., Louisville , Ky., and Columbus, Ohio . Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence also will participate. Key areas for discussion will be ways for the city to work with lenders and community advocates to help homeowners in danger of losing their homes, get borrowers in adjustable-rate mortgages into a lower fixed-rate mortgage and confront the security and blight issues created by vacant houses.
With the collapse of subprime loans and the poor economy, banks have seized thousands of homes in metro Detroit.
Just last week, RealtyTrac reported that metro Detroit ranked second in the nation among the 100 largest metropolitan regions with one out of 33 homes subject to a foreclosure filing. Stockton, Calif., led the nation.
Kilpatrick also will soon appear in a series of public service announcements on radio and television in which he urges people to confront any problems they are having or could have in paying off their loans by calling their lender or a financial counselor.
The public service announcement was funded by the Mortgage Bankers Association, which aided a similar campaign in Ohio that a spokeswoman said caused tremendous interest in residents seeking help.
One source of angst that will be a topic of the mayors' meeting is how to address maintenance of homes in foreclosure.
After Indian Village neighbors caught a man who broke into the vacant house next door to Katsma, police detained him, but the bank that owns the home did not press charges, much to the neighborhood's anger.
Jason Megie, the real estate agent trying to sell the property on Seminole, said banks simply have too many properties in foreclosure to pursue every case.
The intruder was caught before he stole anything, making him a low priority, Megie said.
Between 60% and 70% of the 150 foreclosed homes he has in Detroit have had their plumbing stripped, he said.
"To go sit in 36th District Court with thousands of people for four hours for the person to get a $50 ticket, it's not worth it," he said.
Contact ZACHARY GORCHOW at 313-222-6678 or http://us.f452.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=zgorchow@freepress.com.
http://megaeveningevent.com/
A FREE EVENT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, REALTORS AND INVESTORS AT CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL BY METRO AIRPORT. SEE http://www.megaeveningevent.com/ FOR ALL DETAILS
PLUS FOLLOWING REPUBLISHED ARTICLE BY RALPH MARCUS MAUPIN AND ART DANNIELS FROM THE FREE PRESS ON MAYORS CONFRONTING HOUSING BUBBLE:
Mayors to confront foreclosures
Meeting in Detroit to study growing crisis
November 20, 2007
BY ZACHARY GORCHOW
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
The foreclosed house next door to Kristi Katsma's home in Detroit 's Indian Village symbolizes the potential rot the foreclosure crisis creates for neighborhoods.
After it was broken into repeatedly and stripped of copper pipes and architectural elements, residents have banded together to help the house on Seminole, setting up a security system and caring for the yard in hopes of protecting their neighborhood's character.
"In part, we're doing this to safeguard our investment," said Katsma, 37. "The longer a house is empty, the more it's in disrepair and the greater a chance that it's going to get broken into."
With thousands of such foreclosed homes eating away at Detroit 's neighborhoods, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick will announce today that several mayors from across the country will convene in Detroit next week to brainstorm ways to confront a crisis plaguing communities everywhere.
Kilpatrick, who heads up the committee that handles the foreclosure issue for the U.S. Conference of Mayors, said the foreclosure crisis is hammering the city in many ways -- from morale in stable communities now stuck with vacant homes to having fewer homeowners who have less equity.
"It's never been to the degree that this is happening," Kilpatrick told the Free Press. "The foreclosure issue is the single-biggest economic issue that we have to overcome in the city of Detroit."
Among the mayors coming to Detroit will be those from Trenton, N.J., Louisville , Ky., and Columbus, Ohio . Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence also will participate. Key areas for discussion will be ways for the city to work with lenders and community advocates to help homeowners in danger of losing their homes, get borrowers in adjustable-rate mortgages into a lower fixed-rate mortgage and confront the security and blight issues created by vacant houses.
With the collapse of subprime loans and the poor economy, banks have seized thousands of homes in metro Detroit.
Just last week, RealtyTrac reported that metro Detroit ranked second in the nation among the 100 largest metropolitan regions with one out of 33 homes subject to a foreclosure filing. Stockton, Calif., led the nation.
Kilpatrick also will soon appear in a series of public service announcements on radio and television in which he urges people to confront any problems they are having or could have in paying off their loans by calling their lender or a financial counselor.
The public service announcement was funded by the Mortgage Bankers Association, which aided a similar campaign in Ohio that a spokeswoman said caused tremendous interest in residents seeking help.
One source of angst that will be a topic of the mayors' meeting is how to address maintenance of homes in foreclosure.
After Indian Village neighbors caught a man who broke into the vacant house next door to Katsma, police detained him, but the bank that owns the home did not press charges, much to the neighborhood's anger.
Jason Megie, the real estate agent trying to sell the property on Seminole, said banks simply have too many properties in foreclosure to pursue every case.
The intruder was caught before he stole anything, making him a low priority, Megie said.
Between 60% and 70% of the 150 foreclosed homes he has in Detroit have had their plumbing stripped, he said.
"To go sit in 36th District Court with thousands of people for four hours for the person to get a $50 ticket, it's not worth it," he said.
Contact ZACHARY GORCHOW at 313-222-6678 or http://us.f452.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=zgorchow@freepress.com.
http://megaeveningevent.com/
Labels: Foreclosures, Indian village Detroit, neighborhood vandalism, pre-foreclosures, properties in foreclosure, realtytrac, Seminole, subprime loans, vacant homes, vacant property
posted by Ralph Marcus (Mark) Maupin | 4:45 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home