Efforts to Help Prevent Spread of REO Properties for Sale by Joseph Smith
Two local organizations that have been helping stop poverty in New York are planning to use the federal economic stimulus grant to help poor residents in the area avoid REO properties for sale.
Officials at Cattaraugus Community Action and Chautauqua Opportunities said that there is a great need and demand for their services. COI executive director Roberta Keller said that Chautauqua Opportunities handled about 75 REO properties for sale for the last six months.
She explained that there is a big possibility that homelessness will continue to increase, adding that many people are having difficulty saving their homes from foreclosures. She pointed out that there were cases of tax foreclosures, but mortgage foreclosures still dominate the market.
According to Keller, old houses are prevalent in the county of Chautauqua. And old houses mean older plumbing and heating units and infrastructure problems such as asbestos or lead which are all expensive to repair or fix.
She pointed out that the foreclosure crisis has affected people from all walks of life, including those who have moderate income and good credit.
The Chautauqua Opportunities will use $1.4 million from the funding for weatherization, $361,000 for the youth?"'""s transitional independent living, $600,000 for development of small business and $800,000 for Early Head Start and Head Start.
The funding will also be used to conduct foreclosure prevention and credit counseling with Dunkirk and Jamestown to stop homelessness due to foreclosure or eviction.
Meanwhile, the Cattaraugus County has received $3 million funds which will be increased if it will use the money to alleviate the problem of unemployment in the area. Tina Zerbian, executive director of Cattaraugus Community Action, said that auditors will be assigned to help homeowners and renters convert their multi-family or single dwellings into safe and energy efficient houses
Aside from weatherization, Cattaraugus will also hire as many as 20 youth to help with home maintenance, learn about construction and green jobs and other community functions such as nutrition and food services.
Zerbian pointed out that these programs are intended for people who have been rendered jobless and are struggling to pay utility costs and make mortgage payments. She said that these people are not poor to begin with but because of some mitigating circumstances, experienced financial difficulties and find themselves in danger of losing their homes to REO properties for sale.
Joseph Smith has been educating buyers on the finer points of REO Properties for Sale at ForeclosedPropertiesData.com for over five years. Read information on finding foreclosed houses.
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