A nonprofit founded by 2010 Purpose Prize winner Inez Killingsworth that has helped thousands of Ohio residents avoid foreclosure is the focus of a blog post by David Bornstein on the New York Times website.
In 2009 alone, more than 8,000 families received help from Empowering and Strengthening Ohio’s People (ESOP) in its 11 Ohio offices, and at least 80 percent of them were able to stay in their homes.
Bornstein traces ESOP’s success to some specific practices, such as:
- Holding lenders accountable by requiring them to sign “fair lending agreements” that spell out the terms of their working relationship and provide a single point of contact with someone who has decision-making authority
- Taking lenders on tours where they see foreclosed homes that are ransacked and often occupied by squatters and drug dealers
- Getting the attention of lenders through letter-writing campaigns and even demonstrations in front of their offices
- Using tough love with homeowners, closing their files if they fail to respond after three phone calls
“When it comes to dealing with borrowers, ESOP has two major advantages over lenders,” writes Bornstein. “First, while lenders have many competing interests, ESOP specializes in saving homes. Second, borrowers tend to trust ESOP – which is a free service – so they provide more comprehensive and truthful information, the key to a solution. They also know that ESOP can tell when a lender if offering a reasonable deal or trying to take advantage of their situation.”