I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
(Graphic: Imagechef.com)
Michigan House Democrats have announced plans to introduce legislation to derail the mounting foreclosure crisis, but some consumer groups are calling the plan a “joke.”
State House Speaker Andy Dillon (D-Redford Township) and House Banking Committee Chairman Andy Coulouris (D-Saginaw) announced plans on Tuesday to introduce legislation that would place a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures in Michigan.
Under the plan, when a mortgage is about to enter into foreclosure, the lender would contact the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA). That agency would then contact the homeowner informing them of an option where MSHDA-certified housing counselors could help broker a settlement between the lender and borrower, thus avoiding a foreclosure.
“We are trying to design a process that can better accommodate the volume of foreclosures we are experiencing,” said Coulouris in a phone interview. “The only risk here is lost opportunity.”
The legislation’s language is still being drafted and the bill is expected to be introduced later this week with Banking Committee hearings scheduled for next week.
Jerry Goldberg, an attorney in Detroit who works with the Moratorium Now Coalition, said the proposal is not enough.
“They need to stop living in a dream world. What a joke. What world are they living in? Does the state have the employees to mediate 40,000 foreclosures?” Goldberg said. “We are not heartened by this measure.”
Goldberg is dismayed because of the realities on the ground. In a press release, House Democrats illustrated the extent of the state’s foreclosure problems:
Michigan ranks seventh in the nation for foreclosures, according to RealtyTrac. More than 145,000 properties were in foreclosure in 2008 – a 21 percent increase from 2007 and a 108 percent increase from 2006. In January of this year alone, 11,418 foreclosures were reported in Michigan.
Goldberg said his group supports a broader two-year plan that has been pushed by state Sen. Hansen Clarke (D-Detroit). Clarke’s bill would move the foreclosure negotiation process into circuit court, allowing a judge to determine the length of time a moratorium is necessary or acceptable. The Clarke bill would also allow a judge to provide up to two years of foreclosure-free time for borrowers.
Clarke said he had not seen the legislation being introduced by Dillon and Coulouris, but he said he was interested.
“I am glad they are taking some actions,” he said in a phone interview.
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