Mdhousing's Blog

Gwynn Oak, MD – Speaking passionately,  at times even closing his eyes and clasping his hands as if in prayer, Seventh District Congressman Elijah Cummings urged Baltimore area homeowners to do everything in their power to protect their financial legacies.

“We must understand that this is about more than you and it is about more than now; it is about having a roof over your head in your old age; it is about leaving a legacy for your children; it is about leaving a legacy for generations unborn,” the congressman said during his eighth foreclosure prevention workshop in Baltimore’s Woodlawn High School.

Cummings said his was the only congressional office in the country that had a staff focused on foreclosure prevention full-time, as members of the audience shouted “Amen!” and “Thank you!”

“We all fall,” he said. “The question is not whether we fall; the question is whether we pick ourselves back up.”

Saturday’s workshop brought financially beleaguered homeowners face to face with prevention counselors, lenders and pro bono attorneys in an attempt to cut through the red tape and work out sustainable alternatives to foreclosure on the spot.

The workshop served as a reminder that although the foreclosure crisis has peaked, a significant number of homeowners remain in distress. Foreclosure activity in Maryland last month more than doubled over May 2012, giving the state one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country.

But Maryland, under the leadership of Governor Martin O’Malley and Lt. Governor Anthony Brown, also has been among the most proactive in its response, passing some of the most sweeping reforms in the country and establishing the HOPE Counseling Network to ensure that homeowners are well-informed of their options, said Deputy Secretary Clarence Snuggs.

Maryland’s HOPE Housing Counseling Network has helped nearly 88,000 homeowners at risk of foreclosure. More than 23,000 families got the time and the counseling to bring their mortgage current. More than 10,000 families received loan modifications so that their monthly payments were more affordable. And more than 6,000 asked for and received foreclosure mediation, so that they had the opportunity at last to sit down face-to-face with their lender and hopefully negotiate a sustainable solution.

“The O’Malley-Brown administration made a choice at the beginning of this crisis to protect homeownership. Better choices have yielded better results for families, neighborhoods and our overall economy.”

Maryland’s housing recovery continues at a strong pace.  According to the Maryland Association of Realtors, the volume of home sales grew by 4.5 percent in 2012 to their highest level in five years.  The supply of homes for sale dropped to its lowest reading since 2006, pointing to a very tight housing market, and last month, Maryland reported its 11th consecutive month of sales gains on a year-over-year basis.  In fact, stronger market conditions may, in part, be driving the increase in foreclosure activity in Maryland, as lenders move to take advantage of growing demand and tight supply.