Baltimore ACORN Voices Foreclosure Injustices in Maryland - By Ron Kipling Williams

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“Empty houses don’t add up – we need to change the equation.”

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One of the most volatile issues in today’s troubling economy was addressed in a town hall meeting facilitated by the Maryland Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) Baltimore office on Thursday, January 29th at the St. Johns Church at 2640 St. Paul Street. ACORN Members, elected officials, and concerned citizens voiced their outrage and opposition to the escalating foreclosure rates for homeowners brought on by predatory lending practices.

“Folks, it’s time for action,” declared ACORN member Louis Beverly, who informed the gathering of the upcoming civil disobedience by ACORN members on February 10th, where there will be a large-scale planned homesteading to prevent the Sheriff’s Office from conducting foreclosure evictions. “This might start with a couple hundred people in churches, but this has to be a movement, as it was 70 years ago,” said Beverly. He is facing eviction himself from his home next month, but vows to fight on. “Believe me, I am not moving out of my house," he said.

In July of 1933 in Cleveland during the Great Depression, John Sparanga and his family were evicted from their home after falling behind their mortgage payments. A grassroots community organization of 10,000 working-class immigrants went head to head with the police, declaring they would not vacate the premises until the Sparanga family got their home back.

At the church Thursday evening, Lt. Sam Cogen of the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office told the gathering that he was there to listen and to bring their information back to the command level before any measures could be considered. Much of this hinges upon the Baltimore City Council, which has to vote on a resolution to support the stopping of foreclosures.

Sharon Black, National Coordinator for The Ad Hoc National Network to Stop Foreclosures and Evictions, who earlier met with Councilman Bernard “Jack” Young (District 12), said, “If the Baltimore City Council passes the resolution, the sheriff will be glad to honor that.” There is, in fact, precedence. Last March, Philadelphia ACORN and other community groups pressed the city council, who in turn ordered the county sheriff to cease foreclosures.

The housing crisis erupted last year, resulting in thousands of foreclosures nationwide, the first major eye-opening sign to the country of the ensuing economic downturn (considering the final declaration last year that America’s recession actually began in December 2007).

“This all began as a housing crisis,” said Robert Strupp, Esq. Director of Research and Policy at the Community Law Center, who spoke of the subsequent crises: banking, automobile, and other industries in a domino effect. “It will not end until we address the housing crisis – it’s all related to housing.”

ACORN has been on the forefront in lobbying legislators to end predatory lending practices that put so many homeowners in jeopardy, such as giving adjustable interest sub-prime loans as opposed to less expensive fixed-rate mortgages, for which they actually qualified, and in the process owing more on their home than it is worth. ACORN has also created what is known as a conciliation conference, working with homeowners and lenders to save families from foreclosure. They have been doing this for the past 10 years – as long as they have been engaged in the foreclosure issue – and have saved thousands of homes. This past year alone they have worked to prevent 600 foreclosures.

“ACORN has been a godsend,” said Carla Jones-Chew, a foreclosure victim. “They truly are for the people.”

Jones-Chew, a self-employed business owner, learned that her house, in which she had been living for 27 years, was in danger of foreclosure. She retained an attorney who told her she had to pay $9,700 to catch up on all of the payments and fees attached to her home; she was able to come up with all but $2,000 of it. However, while on a business trip out of town, her home was purchased. Since then her attorney contacted her only three times, telling her that her case was sent to a judge for review, but there was no chance of her getting her home back.

“They advertise professional help, programs, expertise – I feel like they violate the vulnerability of someone in desperate need,” said Jones-Chew.

“A lot of folks don’t know where to go,” said Donna Hanks, who worked six part-time jobs to keep up with her mortgage, which was carried by Wells Fargo, but ultimately lost her home. “People either commit suicide or go postal.”

“So many homes are being foreclosed,” said Beverly. “One out every 10 homes is going into foreclosure – that’s 10 million homes.”

What becomes even more troubling for many is that the foreclosed homes remain empty for an average of four to 12 months. “Empty houses don’t add up – we need to change the equation,” said Baltimore City Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke (District 14), who is in support of a moratorium on foreclosures.

“Eventually they will sell [the foreclosed home] for less. Why not work with the homeowners to keep them in their homes?” said Strupp, who pointed out that multiple houses on the same street in the same year were being foreclosed because of certain predatory lending practices. The federal government attempted to respond in October of 2007 by creating Hope Now, an alliance between Housing and Urban Development (HUD) service workers, investors, counselors, and other mortgage professionals to provide foreclosure prevention services. However, many say the program is too meager and unresponsive to be effective. “Hope Now is hope too late,” said foreclosure victim Veronica Peterson.

Despite all of this, the political will has not always measured up to the people’s will. “I asked Gov. O’Malley if he would issue a moratorium on foreclosures, and he said he will not,” said political activist Maria Allwine, who said O’Malley refused a moratorium on the BGE rate hike issue as well.

This has many citizens furious, who look at the major bailouts on Wall Street, but see little to no relief on Main Street. Baltimore City Councilman Bill Henry (District 4) said, “We need to put the focus on Washington and not let them think they can [only] take care of the people at the top of the pyramid.”

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To learn more about Maryland ACORN and their foreclosure prevention program, contact them at 410-735-3360, or by email at mdacornbcro@acorn.org.