IN THE NEWS

Himes to host forum on foreclosure prevention

March 25, 2009; As originally appeared in TheReddingPilot.com

U.S. Rep. Jim Himes (D-4) and local legislators will host a foreclosure prevention forum on Saturday, March 28, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Benjamin Franklin Community Center in Norwalk. The workshops will bring together government officials, community organizations, and foreclosure prevention specialists to connect homeowners facing foreclosure with programs and services that can help keep families in their homes.

Mr. Himes will be joined by Norwalk Mayor Richard Moccia; Tom Long, program manager, Mortgage Crisis Job, The Workplace, Inc.; Valencia Taft-Jackson, manager of Residential Mortgages, Connecticut Housing Finance Authority; Joan Carty, president and C.E.O., Housing Development Funds; and Carol Sydnor, director of Homeownership Programs, Mutual Housing Association of Southwestern Connecticut; and other public officials.

Mr. Himes has held similar forums in Stamford, Bridgeport, and Fairfield.

The U.S. House recently passed the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act. The bill includes incentives to encourage lenders to negotiate affordable mortgages for homeowners who are underwater, at risk of foreclosure and those nearing bankruptcy. This plan is expected to help seven to nine million families restructure or refinance their mortgages to avoid foreclosure — as well as their neighbors whose own house values would drop as a result of a nearby foreclosure, Mr. Himes said, in a press release.

Saturday’s event will include an overview by the Congressman on the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, guidance from the foreclosure prevention experts on how best to maintain ownership throughout different stages of the foreclosure process, and a question and answer session with the panelists. Following the public session, local experts and organizations will be available for one-on-one questions from individual participants.