Help Available for Homeowners Facing Foreclosure

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Oakland County homeowners on the brink of losing their homes to tax or mortgage foreclosures have two opportunities to resolve the problems this week, Oakland County Treasurer Andy Meisner said.

Qualified homeowners may get up to $30,000 in loans to pay delinquent property tax or mortgage assistance from the Step Forward Michigan program, which is part of a federally funded program, Meisner told The Detroit News.

The interest-free loans are forgiven at a rate of 20 percent a year. That means if a homeowner stays current on tax and mortgage payments for five years after a Step Forward payment is made, the loan is forgiven.

Some 5,000 properties are set for foreclosure on March 31, and about a fifth of them will go to auction in August.

Free clinics on the foreclosure prevention program will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Jewish Vocational Service, 29699 Southfield Road in Southfield; and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday at new Bethel Missionary Baptist Church, 174 Branch in Pontiac.

Applications for assistance must be started by Dec. 31 and submitted by Jan. 31. Applicants must occupy their home; have delinquent taxes due; be facing a hardship that caused the delinquency; have an income, which can include Social Security or other assistance payments; and have cash reserves of less than 11/2-times their homes’ annual property tax bill.

More information is available here, here, or by calling the Oakland County Treasurer’s Office Financial Empowerment Center at (248) 858-0611.

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