and Families Fighting Foreclosure
When homeowners call the HopeLine, they are usually given a timeline stating where they are in the foreclosure process and how much longer they will be able to keep their home. “It’s a total waste of time,” said one Mill Valley resident. “I didn’t learn anything new, and I had to wait on hold forever just to listen to some guy across the country that doesn’t really know what he’s talking about.
Marin Family Action and Families Fighting Foreclosure under the direction of Manny Fernandez is doing an amazing job of holding the mortgage wolves at Bay. Approximately 36 homes are still in the hands of the families — NOT the lenders or, worse, those that do not hold the note but who “service the loan.”
Marin Family Action focuses on goal-oriented outcomes designed to increase financial stability for residents of Marin County, California. The process begins with financial literacy seminars and programs to establish or reestablishing credit worthiness.
Since June 2009, Marin Family Action has been deluged by people who are facing severe economic strife which may cause them to lose their homes through bank foreclosures. Many of these clients are senior citizens on fixed incomes. By working with attorneys, we have staved off more than 30 foreclosures. Our group has grown to more than 300 tax-paying, voting families representing all ethnic groups, all ages, and all professions. Many of these individuals and families are America’s new “poor,” in that they have not been able to replace jobs lost two or three years ago. Before finding MFA, our families were repeatedly turned down because they “didn’t meet the agency’s criteria,” and/or because these agencies do not work with families facing foreclosure.
