Foreclosure1 Blog

The pace of foreclosures in Athens County is slow but beginning to pick up pace. This year the figure is 131 and it is anticipated that by the end of 2007 the number would exceed 180. Nevertheless the crisis here is not quite so acute and noticeable as in other parts of Ohio County. Generally the modestly prices houses have fallen into the net. Athens County has been spared the intensity most probably because there are more tenants here than owners. Ohio has been worse hit for having one of the most lax regulatory laws in USA.

In Ohio’s urban markets like Columbus fear is the key – countdown in real estate foreclosure has already begun. The government has come forward with a helping hand. Treasurer Cordray came forward with concrete counseling and aid plans at a public gathering. Mark Seifert, one of the attendees said that he had warned about this fall out eight years ago. He blamed it on predatory lenders and greedy borrowers riding high without any legal restrictions. The lenders continuously assured borrowers that real estate would always appreciate and so there was no question of loss of equity. All they had to do was refinance. But the tables turned when property prices began to fall and mortgage rates started to rise. Lenders shied away from any further refinancing talk. Seifert heads a non-profit organization that is trying to negotiate between lenders and borrowers to bring the situation under control.

The tentacles of US housing crisis has crossed the Atlantic and knocking on the doors of English and French banks. Seifert’s efforts had become hot stuff for the global media. His efforts and those like him try to see to the interest of both lenders and borrowers. The latter are keen to keep their houses and lenders are averse to time and money consuming foreclosures. The suggestion from all quarters is that borrowers should immediately contact lenders without delay. There are emergency funds available at Coalition for Appalachian Ohio Development to give victims a time to breathe. Assistance up to $3,000 will be given to those who qualify for the same – earn less than 65% of the average income in the locality, specify reason like illness, unemployment or rate increase for non-payment and show that already serious action has been taken to address the problem. Counseling must be sought from proper quarters.

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