Why homes are lost studied

Foreclosure panel cites refinancing

John Rebchook, Rocky Mountain News

Published October 10, 2007 at midnight

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Susan Foley, recently appointed "foreclosure czar" for the city of Denver, has seen firsthand the impact of people losing their homes.

"This is a very passionate issue for me," Foley said at a Neighborhood, Community & Business Revitalization Committee meeting Tuesday afternoon.

After the meeting, Foley, a planner for Denver's economic development office for the past 20 years, noted that she is also a real estate agent when not on the city clock.

"As a Realtor, I've seen what foreclosures do to families and homeowners," Foley said. "And as a planner, I know how important homeownership is to a community and a neighborhood."

The meeting provided an update on a Foreclosure Task Force created in January and co-chaired by City Councilman Rick Garcia.

Data presented at the meeting showed that 81 percent of the foreclosures in Denver were for loans priced from about $100,000 to less than $200,000.

Garcia said the figures indicate that the vast majority of foreclosures are the result of people refinancing the equity out of their homes, not from people who bought homes.

"There are some $100,0000 homes for sale in Denver, but not 81 percent of them," Garcia said after the meeting.

Separately, Sarah Hayes, a Metro Brokers agent, also said that many of the foreclosures she sees resulted from refinances.

Under a program announced this summer called FHASecure, HUD's Federal Housing Administration will enhance its refinancing program by allowing families with strong credit histories who had been making timely mortgage payments before their loans reset - but are now in default - to qualify for refinancing.

The local HUD office plans to provide details of the program at a free seminar at 6:30 p.m., Oct. 17 at the Margaret W. Carpenter Recreation Center, 1151 Colorado Blvd., Thornton.

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