Metropolitan Opportunity
Expanding Access to Quality Housing
In the Headlines
18 May 2012Grantees Advocate for Responsible Disbursement of Mortgage Settlement Funds
The New York Times reports that parts of a national settlement negotiated with big banks over abuses in their mortgage and foreclosure procedures—intended to help struggling homeowners and mitigate the effects of the foreclosure surge—is being diverted to plug state budget gaps. The Opportunity Agenda, which is featured in this article, and other grantees of the foundation’s Expanding Access to Quality Housing initiative have been strenuously advocating for transparency and accountability in the wake of the settlement.
More Information
- Visit the Opportunity Agenda online
- Read a related story from Marketplace, featuring Ford-supported Enterprise Community Partners
- Learn more about our Expanding Access to Quality Housing initiative
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Joshua Cinelli
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- j.cinelli@fordfoundation.org
Needy States Use Housing Aid Cash to Plug Budgets
By Shaila Dewan May 15, 2012In a budget proposed this week, California joined more than a dozen states that want to help close gaping shortfalls using money paid by the nation’s biggest banks and earmarked for foreclosure prevention, investigations of financial fraud and blunting the ill effects of the housing crisis. California was awarded more than $400 million from the banks, and Gov. Jerry Brown has proposed using the bulk of that sum to pay the state’s debts.
The money was part of a national settlement valued at $25 billion and negotiated with five big banks over abuses in their mortgage and foreclosure processes.