"It's
more practical for tenants if they negotiate, rather than foreclose,
but many people don't know that," said Tchen, a Melrose resident.

It's also a pretty complicated process that a lot of people don't understand, said CAAS intern Emma Dillon.

CAAS
and the Cambridge & Somerville Legal Services (CSLS) Sunday went
door-to-door for a foreclosure outreach campaign to talk to tenants and
owners on the foreclosure list about their rights and how it may be
possible for them to stay in their homes. About a dozen volunteers
appeared for the information and training session before heading out
armed with the list of homeowners who CAAS and CSLS identified as being
in one of the stages of foreclosure. The list came from public records
that were printed in local newspapers.

There are 161
properties in Somerville in the various stages of foreclosure, said
April Kuehnhoff, an attorney-to-be (she just passed the bar exam) for
CSLS. Of those, 17 are bank owned, 17 have been resold to private
individuals, 37 have had foreclosure auctions scheduled and 90 have had
orders sent of the intent to foreclose (with no further process) sent
to them.

CAAS has been tracking evictions for about 15 years,
and typically they see about one or two this year, said Melissa
McWhinney, the CAAS director of outreach. To see 161 homes pop up on
the foreclosure schedule list was alarming, which led CAAS and CSLS to
reach out to tenants.

Somerville is faring better than many
other communities, such as Chelsea, Dorchester, Lynn, Lowell, and other
parts of Boston, McWhinney said. Somerville property values have been
fairly stable during this past year's housing crisis. When homes are
sold at inflated prices, but valued at less than what they are bought
for, that is when communities get into trouble, she said. Somerville
has not seen those fluctuations.

The foreclosure process is
complicated, and takes a long time. That is why volunteers were
instructed to tell people that CAAS and CSLS will hold a meeting on
Nov. 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the CAAS office at 66-70 Union Square to answer
questions. Lawyers will also be present. It takes about a year from
when a person first misses a mortgage payment to when they receive an
eviction notice, though it really varies due to the numerous stages
that occur (see sidebar below).

Rachel Bedick, CAAS' outreach
organizer, said it's nerve wracking when first knocking on doors. Some
owners may not even know their homes are being foreclosed, even after
it's published.

Volunteers were armed with flyers in four
languages-English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Creole. They also
had language booklets with key phrases and to help them identify what
languages people might be speaking if they were unsure.

The
residents were told to relay how CAAS and CSLS can help people stay in
their homes, find rental assistance, seek advice, or refer them to
another source who could help them. The volunteers also stressed that
the foreclosure process is lengthy, and that no one would be kicked out
of their home in the near future.

Ari Daniel Shapiro lives
around the corner from the CAAS office. He showed up on Sunday to knock
on doors to support his community and gain a better understanding of
the diversity that exists outside his doorstep.

"It's a big issue," he said. "I just wanted to be a part of it."

You can reach CAAS at (617)-623-1392 or rbedick@caasomerville.org.

1.
Missed payment-Usually the mortgage payment is due the first of the
month. A late fee is assessed after the 15th day of the month.

2.
Demand letter- After the 60 days of missed payments a demand letter is
sent to the homeowner in attempts to collect and giving them 30 days to
resolve the delinquent amount.

3. Notice of default- After 90
days of missed payment, the loan is transferred to the foreclosure
department. The notice of default is then recorded with the county the
property is located in and mailed out to the homeowner within ten days
the default is recorded. The homeowner is given 90 days from the
recorded date to resolve the default.

4. Notice of Sale- If
after 90 days from the recorded date, the default is not resolved then
a notice of sale will be recorded. This notice states that the lender
will sell the property in 21 days. The copy of the notice will be sent
to the homeowner, posted in the county paper for three consecutive
weeks and at the county courthouse.

5. Trustee Sale- After 21 to 25 days of the notice of sale, the property is sold at a foreclosure sale or auction.

6. Real Estate Owned- when a property is not sold at auction, then the lender lists the property with an REO broker.

7. Eviction- if the property is sold to the highest bidder, then the eviction process starts for the foreclosed owners.

Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kayla_Hoang