By Rebecca HuvalThe Daily Northwestern
Evanston officials and real estate experts told homeowners to read the fine print Tuesday night.
The city set up the Home Preservation Meeting at the Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave., to demystify the scams and pitfalls of home buying to a crowd of about 25 people.
The common refrain was: “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
Participants ate Potbelly sandwiches while they watched worst-case foreclosure scenarios.
In the first skit, a woman sold her house for a lower price than she would have liked because the buyer was a family friend. The second skit showed the danger of predatory loans and the benefit of saving paperwork – the model homeowner was able to confront a company that kept returning her mortgage payments.
Then, the participants split into breakout sessions. They learned about topics such as housing discrimination and reverse mortgages, a loan that delays repayment until the homeowner dies or moves. In each room there were rows of new educational brochures. Participants received plastic bags that were soon brimming with handouts.
Michele Taylor, an advocate for fair lending policies, explained foreclosure scams and their remedies. She intended to play an educational game, but there weren’t enough people in her room. Instead, she talked to people about their individual problems and answered questions.
She said she wanted homeowners to be skeptical of big businesses and of workers motivated by profit.
“The only person who makes money from a higher loan is the broker,” Taylor said. “They have an incentive to make you go into a house for a more expensive loan (than you can handle).”
There were about three people to each session, and some rooms were empty. Ald. Delores Holmes (5th) said the meeting had a low turnout because Mayor Lorraine H. Morton’s sister’s funeral was held at the same time.
Some attendees said the small crowd was beneficial.
“There were a lot of people who had one-on-one consultations,” city ombudsman Nancy Flowers said.
Evanston resident Dorothy Petty got to talk to a legal expert without other participants interrupting. She told him that her mortgage company didn’t pay taxes or homeowner insurance. Supervisory attorney William Kolen gave her his card and recommended she call his office for help.
The organizers said the evening was a success.
“Even though we had a small turnout, we had such a variety of information and excellent skits,” said Patricia Vance, executive director of Community and Economic Development Association Neighbors at Work.
Margaret Feit Clarke said she attended the meeting because she’s the facilitator of peace and justice at St. Nicholas Catholic Church, 806 Ridge Ave. She said she wants to educate her congregation about housing issues.
“There was a lot to digest and I was worried about people keeping up with that,” Clarke said. “But it was about finding connections with people you can trust. Finding allies.”
Reach Rebecca Huval at [email protected].
