Today, the Housing Initiative Partnership, Inc. (HIP) and the Capital Area Foreclosure Network (CAFN) are officially launching a new regional Spanish and English foreclosure prevention hotline—888-794-8830—to connect struggling homeowners and renters whose landlords are facing foreclosure with organizations that can provide them with free, personalized assistance.
 
“Too many of our region’s residents are paying thousands of dollars to scam artists who can do nothing to help them.  By calling the hotline, residents can get connected to nonprofit housing counselors near their home or work,” said  CAFN co-chair Paul DesJardin of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
 
The hotline is being operated by the nonprofit HIP, which provides both educational workshops and one-on-one counseling in both Prince George’s County and Montgomery County to homeowners facing foreclosure.  HIP has six certified foreclosure prevention counselors on staff that have provided counseling and assistance to thousands of homeowners since the foreclosure crisis hit.   
 
“It is vital that both Spanish and English speaking homeowners are directed to a local counseling agency where they can receive one-on-one counseling rather than impersonal phone counseling.” said Mosi Harrington HIP’s Executive Director “HIP is particularly concerned about the impact of the foreclosure crisis on the region’s Latino population.  We worry about the number of Latinos who received predatory loans and who have lost income due to the slowdown in the construction industry.”
 
The Capital Area Foreclosure Network, a regional foreclosure prevention network jointly led by the Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, is providing funding to support the hotline and marketing its availability. 
 
“Partnerships have been the hallmark of all CAFN activities,” said CAFN co-chair Chuck Bean, Executive Director of the Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington.  “By stitching together funding and partners, CAFN has been able to bring nonprofits, banks and local governments together to work on foreclosure prevention. 
 
On March 23rd, CAFN and the Urban Institute, a key regional data partner, are co-hosting a free conference from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to share new foreclosure data for the region, data on housing counseling outcomes, and additional information about resources for struggling homeowners, such as the hotline. 
 
For more information and to register for the event, please visit http://www.cafn.org
 
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