by Alex Morales
Published: July 13, 2011
On June 11 & 12, 2011 The Resurrection Project (TRP) – in partnership with the Alliance for Stabilizing Our Communities, led by the National Council of La Raza (NCLR, the National Urban League (NUL), and the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD), with the support of Bank of America— hosted a free Home Rescue Fair at Casa Esperanza in Melrose Park, Ill.  Loan specialists, housing counselors, and attorneys provided intensive counseling and offered home retention strategies through workshops and in-language assistance to 199 Illinois families facing financial hardship.
Minority communities have been among the hardest hit by the economic downturn that continues to plague many American families.  This reality was evident in client breakdown as 64% were Latino, 17% Caucasian, 11% African American and 5% Asian.  Lenders like Wells Fargo and Bank of America had a strong presence,  and were in high demand since most homeowners in attendance had mortgages with one of these two entities. For close to 60% of attendees this was the first time they worked directly with their banks and almost half of those in attendance were over 90 days behind in their payments. This is an important consideration as those families will now have the opportunity to explore ways to keep their beloved homes.
The Chicago Home Rescue Fair is one of many fairs that we at The Resurrection Project (TRP) have held since 2009 to help keep families in their homes or navigate other options after foreclosure.  For those who might have missed this opportunity and wish to have their case assessed please contact TRP at (312) 666-1323. TRP is committed to helping alleviate homeowners facing financial hardship across the Chicagoland area.