On February 7, 2016 Beth Shay, Esq,. Director of Homeownership Rights at SeniorLAW Center, testified before the Division of Housing and Community Development about the needs of senior homeowners in Philadelphia.
The need for a senior triage program in Diversion Court continues. There were 4,141 mortgage foreclosure actions filed in Philadelphia in 2015, about 20% of which came from neighborhoods in the North and Southwest parts of the City where the percentage of seniors who own their homes hovers between 70 and 80%. According to data gathered by the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging, in the zip codes experiencing the highest foreclosure rates, namely, 19120 and 19124, between 70% and 80% of those seniors living there are homeowners and approximately half have mortgages on their homes. Senior homeowners represent a large and growing segment of the Philadelphia foreclosure cases. At the time that demand is increasing, the rules governing forward mortgage modification changed on December 31, 2016 when the Home Affordable Modification Program sponsored by the US Treasury ended. We expect that loan modification applications for senior homeowners may need increasing oversight and advocacy in the coming months. Beginning in January 2017, homeowners whose mortgage payments are less than 90 days delinquent, can contact their mortgage company and request mortgage assistance.
Read the full testimony here.
Read more about our Homeowner’s Assistance Program here.