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Seminars aim at homeowners facing foreclosure

NORTH BAY – North Bay lenders, Realtors and nonprofits are stepping up efforts to prevent foreclosures by educating troubled homeowners on alternative options.

A group of mortgage and real estate companies will present a free workshop for homeowners in Santa Rosa on April 26, and a group of community organizations will hold a separate event in Napa on April 13.

The Santa Rosa workshop, the third in a series called Smart Home Choices, is targeted at homeowners in early stages of default on their mortgages, or who expect to have trouble making payments in the near future, according to Trish McLean, an agent with Century 21 Alliance in Santa Rosa and an organizer of the event.

“Our real emphasis is really pre-foreclosure or pre-short sale to get people before they hit that bump in the road so that when they get to it they will be prepared,” Ms. McLean said.

According to Ms. McLean, many borrowers who can afford their payments choose to walk away because the value of their house has decreased. “You make the payment on your car even though your car is worth less than the day you bought it, and your car will never go up in value, but your home will,” Ms. McLean said

In Napa County, a separate workshop sponsored by Queen of the Valley Medical Center and the Napa Valley Community Foundation will feature a panel of nonprofit and government representatives as well as one-on-one sessions with credit counselors. The event, called the Napa Home Foreclosure Prevention Forum, will include information about the mortgage and foreclosure process, and rights and resources for homeowners.

Attendees at both workshops are encouraged to bring their original loan documents, most recent mortgage statements and income documentation.

The Santa Rosa workshop is Saturday, April 26 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Redwood Credit Union headquarters at 3033 Cleveland Ave. A Spanish workshop will follow from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, visit www.homechoicesworkshop.com or call 707-544-9087.

The Napa workshop – presented in English and Spanish – is Sunday, April 13 at St. John the Baptist Hall at 924 Napa St. from 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information, call 707-253-4219 or e-mail foreclosureforum@co.napa.ca.us.

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