Weinstein Introduces Bill Helping Homeowners with Reverse Mortgages Facing Foreclosure
In response to recent articles highlighting the plight of some of the most vulnerable senior homeowners with reverse mortgages, Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein (Sheepshead Bay, Flatlands) and Senator Jeff Klein (D-Bronx/Westchester), announced the introduction of legislation (A10745/S8177) that would afford these homeowners with reverse mortgages the full consumer protections of New York States’ home preservation laws.
Reverse mortgages are a way for the elderly who are house-rich but cash-poor to receive monthly payments from the lender. Recent media coverage has highlighted an increase in residential foreclosures against homeowners with reverse mortgages. Legal practitioners have also voiced concerns about the rise in reverse mortgage foreclosure filings. In addition, some lenders seem to be engaging in deceptive or exploitative practices when offering reverse-mortgages to the vulnerable elderly citizens of our state. As reported, the New York State Department of Financial Services is investigating complaints about reverse mortgages.
Weinstein and Klein’s bill will provide reverse mortgage homeowners the consumer protections given to other homeowners currently not included in many of the protections of our State’s residential foreclosure prevention laws. This includes requiring lenders to provide notices to homeowners with reverse mortgages 90-days in advance of filing a foreclosure action against the homeowner, including a notice containing contact information to free non-profit resources to help negotiate a resolution early and perhaps avert the filing of a foreclosure action. Homeowner would also be entitled to in-person mandatory residential foreclosure settlement conferences with the foreclosing entities under court oversight.
“In light of the recent increase in foreclosure filings against New York’s senior homeowners with reverse mortgages, and an uptick in the outrageous deceptive practices of the lending industry, affording these often vulnerable homeowners with the full protections of our residential foreclosure prevention laws is timely, and the right thing to do,” said Weinstein. “These changes must be made so courts can protect seniors from losing homes they worked their whole life to attain.”
Walker Introduces Bill To Remediate Lead-Based Paint In NYCHA Developments
Assemblywoman Latrice Walker (Brownsville, East New York, East Flatbush, Crown Heights, Bed-Stuy) today will announce legislation that would create a four-year deadline to remediate lead-based paint in all New York City Housing Authority developments.
The measure would require NYCHA to remove lead contamination from 55,000 housing units within four years. A lead-contaminated dust clearance test would be performed in all NYCHA housing units within two years.
Additionally, any unit with a positive lead-contaminated dust shall be remediated within two months of date of discovery, and priority in testing and remediation shall be given to units in which a child or children under age six resides.
Walker will officially announce the legislation at 5 p.m. today at her district office, 400 Rockaway Avenue in Brownsville.
Hamilton Mourns Death Of Brooklynite At Ithaca College
Central Brooklyn State Sen. Jesse Hamilton, yesterday mourned the death of Brooklynite and Ithaca College student Anthony Nazaire.
Nazaire, 19, was stabbed to death over the weekend during a reported “large brawl,” following a party on the nearby Cornell University Campus. The incident remains under investigation and no arrests have been made.
“This weekend, senseless violence took a member of the Ithaca College community. Sophomore, Brooklynite, and only 19 years old, Anthony Nazaire lost his life early Sunday morning. My thoughts and prayers are with the Ithaca College community and Anthony Nazaire’s loved ones as they face this profound loss under the most brutal of circumstances,” said Hamilton, an Ithaca College alumnus (Class of 1985).
“The Ithaca community must lift up the family and friends of Anthony Nazaire in this moment of grief and remembrance. I join those urging anyone who can aid the authorities’ understanding of the events surrounding Nazaire’s fatal stabbing to contact the Ithaca Police Department at 607-272-3245 or the tipline at 607-697-0333.
“The cruelty of senseless violence knows no boundaries as to geography, background, or age – it strikes with a suddenness and a starkness that can end in a desolation, in a despair at the injustice of a promising young soul taken far too soon. We cannot surrender to those feelings of despair. Instead, we must reflect, together, on what we can do to honor Anthony Nazaire’s life and memory.”
DA Thompson Gets 59 Guns Off The Street
Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson announced the gun buyback day he had over the weekend in conjunction with the NYPD succeeded in getting 59 firearms off the street.
The ‘money for gun, no questions asked” program took place last Saturday at the Clarendon Road Church in Flatbush.
“Saturday’s Gun Buyback is one component of our efforts to rid Brooklyn’s streets of illegal firearms,” said Thompson. “With law enforcement and community working together, we make our communities safer.”
By the end of the day, the buyback had done just that: 59 firearms — from revolvers to rifles — lay tagged on church tables, never to reach the hands of criminals. The guns had been exchanged for bank cards: $200 for handguns and assault rifles, and $25 for rifles and shotguns. Five of the handguns turned in had previously been defaced.
Saturday was the latest in gun buyback events hosted by local DA’s offices and the NYPD that have taken in about 10,000 guns citywide since 2008.
Treyger Gets UFT Endorsement
City Council Member Mark Treyger (Coney Island, Bensonhurst) yesterday received the endorsement of the United Federation of Teachers in his candidacy for the open Democratic District Leader seat in the 46th Assembly district (Coney Island, Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights).
“Our members are proud to support one of their own in Council Member Mark Treyger,” said United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew. “Council Member Treyger’s proven record of public service and lifetime of dedication to the community will make him the best Democratic District Leader for the 46th Assembly District.”
“As a long-time history teacher, I’m honored to have the support of my colleagues at the United Federation of Teachers,” said Treyger. “I’ve fought tirelessly in the City Council to give our students the best possible education and provide them with the tools they need to be successful. As the next Democratic District Leader, I look forward to partnering with the UFT and our schools to continue our work of uniting all communities and bringing new voices and ideas into the political process.”
Donovan Gets AFL-CIO Endorsement
Congressman Dan Donovan (Southern Brooklyn, Staten Island) yesterday yesterday received the endorsement of the New York State AFL-CIO union in his bid for re-election in November.
Donovan is the only Republican member to receive the group’s backing.
“Daniel Donovan Jr. quickly demonstrated his commitment to issues important to the Labor Movement by being a powerful advocate for the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act and voting with us against job-killing trade deals. He understands the values and priorities of the hardworking men and women of the 11th Congressional District and we look forward to beginning a grassroots campaign to get our members to the polls to re-elect Daniel Donovan to Congress,” said NYS AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento.
“As the son of a longshoreman, I understand firsthand the challenges of raising a family in a working-class household. The hardworking men and women of my district are at the forefront of every decision I make in Congress,” said Donovan. “Protecting American jobs and our workers will always be my top priority, and I’m honored that the AFL-CIO has recognized that with their endorsement.”
The New York State AFL-CIO is a federation of 3,000 affiliated public sector, private sector, and building trades unions throughout the state, representing 2.5 million members, retirees and their families.
