Carmen and Ricardo Ramirez had been living the American Dream of homeownership in Washington Heights when the recession interrupted it. As recounted by The Associated Press in a recent story marking a decade since the housing crash, the couple had been managing the payments for the $299,000 adjustable-rate mortgage on their one-bedroom condominium in Upper […]
The end of New York State’s legislative session is always an action-packed time, and this year did not disappoint, with lawmakers working into the early hours of Saturday morning on June 17, while advocates labored to keep New York’s housing needs on the agenda. Ultimately, the final results include several victories and one major defeat: […]
For Pamela Litzsey-Thomas, going into foreclosure on her Niagara Falls home was just another in a series of financial setbacks that included losing her job and getting inundated with medical bills after she was struck by a bus. “I just kept feeling like I was being slapped in the face,” she said. But Litzsey-Thomas refused […]
Thousands of “zombie homes” continue to blight communities across New York, but housing advocates are praising the Assembly’s recent passage of legislation that would go a long way toward attacking the problem. But some policy experts also say the legislation, which now faces a battle in the Senate, provides only some solutions to the problem. […]
For many homeowners working to get a loan modification, just staying on top of deadlines and paperwork can be tedious, complicated, and overwhelming — even when they are working with a professional housing counselor. That’s why the Center for NYC Neighborhoods is partnering with Neighborhood Housing Services of Bedford-Stuyvesant on an innovative one-year pilot program […]
In a previous blog post, we showed how nearly a decade after the Great Recession many black homeowners in the city owe more on their mortgages than their property is worth. Homeowners in these “underwater mortgages” are unable to begin to build wealth and are more likely to end up in foreclosure. This time, we’ve taken […]
The Federal government is seeking to crack down on money laundering by unmasking individuals behind large all-cash purchases of Manhattan real estate by shell companies. For the next six months, through a new pilot program, the U.S. Treasury Department will require companies to disclose the names of individuals behind all-cash purchases of more than $3 million […]
With the city squeezed for space for affordable housing, policymakers are looking at every possible available square inch of land to construct homes, from church parking lots to NYCHA property. In a report released last week, Comptroller Scott Stringer advocates for the creation of a land bank to exploit vacant land remaining in New York […]
Morgan Stanley has agreed to a multi-billion dollar settlement to end a federal investigation into its role in the collapse of the housing market. But what does that mean for homeowners still struggling to cope with the weight of unaffordable mortgages and abandoned properties in their communities? A lot, actually. Thursday’s announcement by Attorney General […]
DSNews: Forces Join to Protect Borrowers from Foreclosure Relief Scams Press Release: AG Schneiderman Announces Innovative Partnership with Leading Statewide Media Associations to Protect New Yorkers from Foreclosure Rescue Scams Crain’s New York: Advocates’ $4 Billion Plan Urges Cuomo to Fund More Supportive and Senior Housing Rooflines: Some Forms of Displacement Are Beyond Criminal The Brooklyn Reader: Don’t […]
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