Philadelphia Courts Adopt ‘Massively Effective’ Foreclosure Rescue Program
A program to curb foreclosures by the city and courts of Philadelphia has staved off the sale of nearly 80 percent of the properties referred to it in the first three months of operation.
The plan requires courts to review all scheduled residential foreclosures with borrowers and lenders before the properties can be sold, the New York Times reports. The parties try to reach agreements to modify the loan terms so borrowers can stay in their homes. The effort, called the Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Pilot Program, is the first to be sponsored by a city.
Of 552 homes referred to the program, 230 were permanently removed from sale and 200 had their planned sales postponed for one to five months, said the judge who oversees the program, Annette Rizzo of the Court of Common Pleas.
Ian Phillips, legislative director for the Pennsylvania chapter of Acorn, told the Times the program has been “massively effective.”
