Residents seek opportunity to stay in homes

Date: 9/20/2011

Sept. 21,2011

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor

SPRINGFIELD —Wilfredo Guzman Jr. wants to pay his mortgage. He has offered his lender, Fannie Mae (FNMA) a plan to buy back his home at 78 Healey St. at the current market value.

He’s waiting for an answer.

Guzman’s story was released in a letter he wrote to a Boston law firm handling the foreclosure. It is one of a string of letters from city residents asking to remain in their homes and seeking solutions to pay their mortgages.

The letters, which illustrate the continuing foreclosure problem in the city, were gathered by Springfield No One Leaves.

There will be a vigil at Guzman’s home on Sept. 28 at 6 p.m. to demand FNMA accept a rental arrangement so the family can stay in this home.

Malcolm Chu, an organizer for Springfield No One Leaves told Reminder Publications there were 595 foreclosures in the city last year. The numbers of foreclosures completed this year stands at 240, which he attributes not to a better economy but to an investigation by the attorney general into banks and mortgage lending practices that slowed down foreclosure efforts.

Chu believes the pace of foreclosure proceedings will be on the increase during the last four months of this year and will probably number close to 600 cases.

The practice of evicting people who are willing to make alternative arrangements to keep paying is “powerful but insane,” Chu said.

Guzman wrote, “I would like the bank to stop the no-fault eviction of me and my family and I am offering to buy back my home at the current market value. If granted this opportunity I would then be able to fulfill my responsibilities to you and to my family who does not deserve to be homeless and a burden on society. As you know we are in one of the worst recession in the history of the United States of America. If you are unwilling to do this I am offering to pay rent to the bank to keep my family in our home.”

Guzman and his family has lived at 78 Healy St. for four years and was able to pay a mortgage that took almost 75 percent of his income until a car accident put him out of work for a month. Still he managed to make arrangements to pay his obligation until he lost his job and was unemployed for 13 months,

He is back on his feet with a new job, and he wants to stay in his home.

Guzman’s story is similar to other city residents fighting eviction. David Dunwell lost his job after 17 years of employment, which set in motion events that caused a foreclosure notice from FNMA. He is working again and seeks an arrangement so he and his family can stay in their home.

Dunwell wrote, “We purchased our home in the spring of 2003, and with the help of the family were able to fix it up enough to move in. Within months I realized that I was scammed. The inspector, part of the predatory scam, overlooked quite a bit of issues with the home. Despite our limited income my wife and I worked to keep the house in good repair. We were able to refinance in the spring of 2005 and were doing fine up until the loss of my job. Now that our income has recovered, my wife and I are able to afford to pay reasonable rent and/or purchase the home back at real market value. I am asking that Fannie Mae allow my family and I to stay in our home as rent paying tenants, and work towards an agreement to sell us our home back at real market value. If Fannie Mae agreed to sell the home back, we would even agree to share any equity appreciation.”

Chu said there are two bills in the Massachusetts Legislature that are being considered that would help people such as Guzman and Dunwell. Senate Bill S767 and House Bill House 493 would add a section to the Massachusetts foreclosure law, G.L. c. 244, “to allow homeowners and their families, if they fulfill the responsibilities of tenancy, to remain in their homes and pay rent after foreclosure under certain limited circumstances and for a limited period of time.”

The bills stated, “In order for the former owner to remain as an occupant after foreclosure, several conditions must be met: 1) the purchaser at foreclosure must be either the holder of the mortgage or in the mortgage business. If someone not in the mortgage business and not connected to the mortgage holder buys the property at foreclosure, that person may file an eviction against the former owner as allowed by current law; 2) The former homeowner must comply with basic occupancy obligations —pay the rent (equal to Department of Housing and Urban Development fair market rent), not cause a nuisance, not commit illegal acts, etc.; 3) If the former homeowner does not comply with these standard rules, the purchaser at foreclosure can bring an eviction action against the former homeowner; 4) The purchaser at foreclosure may also bring an eviction action against the former homeowner if there is a binding purchase and sale agreement on the property with a bona fide purchaser or if the property is sold.”