Ohio Attorney General Representatives Sue Pohlman and Cornelius O’Grady recently came to Preble County to assist in the “Save Our Homes” meeting in order to create a Foreclosure Taskforce for our county. The meeting, held Friday, March 20, was with Pohlman, O’Grady, Preble County Commissioner Bob Stonecash, along with local bankers, elected officials, Community Action Agencies, County Extension agents, Chamber of Commerce representatives, Legal Aid Society representatives, lawyers, realtors, mortgage brokers, also construction companies, attorneys, law enforcement, and community leaders, all who assist the public with foreclosure issues.
Members of the community discussed how Preble County could get back on track and find ways to help reduce the amount of foreclosures in our area. The Save Our Home Program was created because of the long-range negative impact that occurs when residents lose their homes due to the economic downturn.
Important points discussed were:
•The effects on the family. Foreclosures financially are devastating and families can lose their most valuable assets, severely damage their credit and homeowners often have very little chance of total financial recovery.
•The effects on the community. Communities also take a toll on foreclosures and can suffer from the loss of tax revenue, result in an increase of crime, homes become neglected and are poorly maintained, contributes to neighborhood instability, a decrease in property values and raises costs for local government.
•Law enforcement resources and local government resources are significantly depleted due to foreclosure processes.
•Mediation resources are available for people dealing with foreclosures.
This is an excellent article. Thank you for posting it. Everyone should click ahead to ready the article in its entirety. The public officials in this county in Ohio really have it together. I wish them success, and I hope they will inspire counties across the country to do the same.