Please click here to read the letter.

According to the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, Labor Day 2010 will be a challenging day for working people across America. The nation is in the third year of a terrible economic crisis, one that has claimed a larger percentage of US jobs than any other recession since the Great Depression. Adding to the pain, at 31 months since the latest recession officially began, the US now has regained a far smaller share of those jobs than in past recessions.

More than 1,200 foreclosures were recorded in Massachusetts in July, a near 80 percent increase from the same month in 2009, while foreclosure petitions decreased by more than 20 percent, according to The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.

The Administration’s goal is to promote stability for both the housing market and homeowners. To meet these objectives in the context of a very challenging market, the Administration developed a broad approach implementing state and local housing agency initiatives, tax credits for homebuyers, neighborhood stabilization and community development programs, mortgage modifications and refinancing, continued Federal Housing Administration (FHA) engagement, and support for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Click here to read the letter from the Building Blocks Coalition.

Law expands aid for homeowners facing foreclosure, creates new protections for renters in foreclosed buildings

On Saturday, August 7, 2010, Governor Patrick signed into Law An Act Relative To Mortgage Foreclosures (the “Act”) as Chapter 258 of the Acts of 2010. The Act has fourteen SECTIONS which address six separate and distinct purposes relating to foreclosures and mortgages. SECTION 7 of the Act completely rewrites the 90-Day Notice of Right To Cure A Default law that was passed in 2007. It does so by striking out the existing provisions of section 35A of Chapter 244 of the General Laws and inserting a new section 35A (“Section 35A”).

The region’s rental market has tightened in recent months, with apartment vacancies falling and rents rising for the first time since the beginning of the economic crisis.

Analysts said the changes, while small, signal a market shift that is making apartments harder to find and afford when many families are struggling with lost jobs, lost homes, and pay cuts.

Click here to read the full article.

Click here to view the Federal Register Notice from August 4, 2010.

Click here to view the FY2011 Proposed Fair Market Rents.

State Updates

2009-2010 Legislative Session Comes to a Close