Ten Things You Can Do to Stay in Your Home: From ACORN and The Nation magazine

[Better Believe It]

Ten Things You Can Do to Stay in Your Home
The Nation
March 4, 2009


As a kind of home remedy, so to speak, The Nation and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) have issued a useful list of ten ways to prevent or fight foreclosure.

 1 Make sure your loan has a fixed rate of interest and not a variable rate. If it has variable rate, work with your mortgage lender to get it to a lower fixed rate.

 2 Seek out HUD-certified counselors when you are thinking of refinancing. Contact only nonprofit agencies such as the Legal Aid Society. You do not have to pay a fee to get out of foreclosure.

 3 If you are being foreclosed, call the ACORN foreclosure hot line immediately, at [phone].

 4 Do not take out loans that are beyond your financial means. Do not make payments to any institution except your lender.

 5 If you are a renter in a house that has been foreclosed, your landlord must give you notice before evicting you. Once you are given notice, find out how much time you have--the laws vary from state to state. Click here for renters' rights in a particular state. Go to nolo.com, for more information. (If you have info or resources on renters' rights, please send an e-mail to [e-mail].)

 6 Avoid companies that promise a quick fix. Go to Fraud Guides to see a list of scams.

 7 If you believe you are in a foreclosure scam, contact a lawyer immediately. Visit the National Association for Consumer Advocates or the Institute for Foreclosure Legal Assistance. Always use an attorney with a background in representing families in foreclosure.

 8 Stay in communication with your bank, and always ask questions when you don't understand something that was said or something that you read. Go to the Center for Responsible Lending for an explanation of foreclosure terms.

 9 Support ACORN and other organizations that assist families with foreclosures: Center for Community Change, Take Back the Land, National Low Income Housing Coalition, Housing Assistance Council and National Housing Law Project.

Watch testimonials on the Brave New Films website, fightingforourhomes.com.

10 Call your local ACORN chapter for help. Volunteer to be a home defender in your area. Display an ACORN Foreclosure-Free Zone sign in front of your house or apartment. Tell family and friends facing foreclosure to seek counseling from ACORN, and tell Congress to keep families in their homes. Go to acorn.org and click here for more information on advocacy.

Please read the complete article at:

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090323/ten_things?rel=hp_currently