Foreclosures homes are everywhere in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania It has wreaked havoc on lives of both rich and poor people. This trend prompted several community groups to step up and intensify their efforts to identify struggling homeowners before they abandon or lose their homes to foreclosures.
Some members of these groups are going around neighborhoods hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis, trying to identify distressed homeowners who are in danger of turning their properties into foreclosures homes.
In West Oak Lane, efforts are ongoing to revive the neighborhood which is severely affected by the foreclosure and unemployment problems. The Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corp. is seeking to purchase foreclosure homes and make them ready for occupancy to help stabilize property value in the neighborhood.
However, instead of waiting for distressed homeowners to come forward and seek its help, the organization send out some of its staff to go around the neighborhood and search for families in need of help.
Another nonprofit group, Boston Community Capital, is purchasing foreclosures homes from lenders and banks and reselling them to homeowners at reduced prices and under modified loan terms. Boston Community Chief Executive Officer Elyse Cherry said that the goal of the group is to try to stabilize neighborhoods by keeping foreclosed properties occupied and productive.
In West Oak Lane, 1,500 homes are in some form of foreclosure. The area has a total of 20,000 homes and most of its residents are less educated and those who are employed depend on overtime or hourly wages for survival. Furthermore, 60 percent of residents in the neighborhood are earning less than 60,000 annually.
The metro Philadelphia area posted an unemployment rate increase of 8.2 percent in May from 4.9 percent the previous year.
Meanwhile, Ogontz Avenue revitalization Corp. Chief Executive Officer Jack Kitchen said that the economic downturn could force more people to bail out, leaving communities and neighborhoods with abandoned foreclosures homes that attract crime.
Ogontz Avenue Revitalization started buying and rehabilitating distressed properties in 1999. Since it started, the organization was able to reduce the number of abandoned foreclosures homes from 350 to the current 70. The effort has helped raised values of surrounding properties.
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