Legal Aid Obtains Settlement For Boston-Area Tenants Facing Foreclosure Eviction; Lender Coughs Up $40K, Gives Renters Option To Buy Building

In a letter from the President Of The Boston Bar Association (appearing on the website of The Metropolian Corporate Counsel) describing the funding crisis faced by legal aid in Masachusetts, Kathy B. Weinman describes the successful work of pro bono counsel in one particular case involving tenants facing foreclosure eviction:

• When the bank foreclosed on their building, the Vietnamese-American tenants were fully paid up on their rent. During the foreclosure, however, conditions at their residence had deteriorated; the building had developed extensive leaks and the heating system had broken down. The tenants - including the elderly and disabled - nevertheless perservered.

• When the bank sought to evict them, they called the Greater Boston Legal Services for help. A staff attorney, Zoe Cronin, led their successful defense. After exploring all avenues of redress, Cronin negotiated an agreement with the bank entitling the tenants to a one-year lease at reduced rent, an option to purchase the building, and compensation exceeding $40,000 for the conditions they had endured.

• These tenants were fortunate. They had a lawyer. In normal times, legal services programs in Massachusetts turn away over one-half of qualified callers in need of help as a result of inadequate resources.

For the rest of the letter, see "Send Lawyers, Guns And Money" (or go here for published version).

For other posts involving the problems tenants face in homes in foreclosure, go here, go here, go here, go here, go here, go here, and go here. Copyright 2009 The Home Equity Theft Reporter http:// HomeEquityTheft.blogspot.com SkimmingKappaRent