Local Non-Profit Offers Foreclosure Intervention

ATLANTA, Ga. - A non-profit group is offering help for local homeowners facing foreclosure. Home Free USA organizers say they don’t have the answers for everyone, but they say many people walk out the door with new loans they can afford.

They’re calling it foreclosure intervention. The event began Friday, and continues on Saturday. Anyone in foreclosure danger is welcome to walk in and get help.

Charlotte Fen went to the event at Salem Baptist Church looking for help after falling behind on her mortgage.

”My husband he lost his job, Fen said. ”We got a modification, then the next thing we know we totaled our vehicle.

Both Fen and her husband work, but the new job he found only pays half as much as before, and they’re behind on their mortgage again.

At the foreclosure intervention, Home Free USA is helping put homeowners like Fen face-to-face with lenders Wells Fargo and Bank of America. Counselors meet with homeowners before the banks do to help them present their case.

The service is free, and counselors wa you should never pay for a loan modification. They say anyone trying to sell you a foreclosure service is probably trying to scam you.

Many homeowners left on Friday with loan modification offers, but Fen was told she’ll have to wait two weeks for an answer.

”We’re resolved if we do lose the house, the house isn't every thing, said Fen. ”Its just a roof over our heads. There are other options-- a lot of rental properties available for the price we can afford.

Several people were seen leaving Friday’s event with smiles on their faces, and new loan modifications that will work. But Home Free USA counselors say they also keep boxes of tissues with them because for some people, there are no solutions. They say the important thing is to come down and figure out exactly where you stand with the lender.

There’s another workshop offered on Saturday at Salem Bible Church on 2283 Baker Road Northwest in Atlanta. It runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.