Atlanta Mayor’s Plan Would Allow Discounts for Police, Fire to Buy Foreclosed Houses
Atlanta city leadership has proposed a new plan to work with big banks in order to give police officers and firefighters a discount on houses that are in foreclosure, The Huffington Post reports.
This new plan, Mayor Kasim Reed said, involves "one of the largest banks in America" to give reduced rates to these public servants. While some might feel offended that one segment of the population would get a deep discount to buy a house, given the number of foreclosures hammering Atlanta and the surrounding area, getting these houses off the market will benefit everyone.
For those struggling with foreclosure in Georgia , filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Atlanta may be a smart move. Foreclosures have hit people who have lost their jobs, become over-extended financially, have had medical bills or other problems. For those people, clearing out their debt through bankruptcy can help them keep their house instead of losing it to foreclosure.
An experienced Atlanta bankruptcy lawyer can guide a consumer through this process. Many people, however, choose to deal with their debt through minimum payments and expecting calls from creditors. The better way is to get that debt eliminated and set up a payment plan to pay back some of the debt you owe.
For the many who have considered filing for bankruptcy in Atlanta, they may be able to pay off their debt and still keep their house, eliminating their outstanding debt all while freeing them up to continue making payments so they aren't kicked to the curb. And that can only help our local economy. The more foreclosures abandoned opens up neighborhoods for crime and keeps house values down.
Under the mayor's plan, The Huffington Post reports, one major benefit is that city employees who have settled in Atlanta's suburbs would be drawn back into the city, which would help with the tax base as well as retail numbers. Detroit created a similar program in 2010, offering police officers homes there.
This is in line with what federal officials have been trying to do. Earlier this summer the Obama administration talked with investors to attempt to turn government-owned foreclosures into rental properties, the newspaper reports. Senators have proposed a bill that would give U.S. residency visas to foreigners who invest $500,000 or more in the U.S. real estate market.
New York City officials have reported that foreclosed homes have become a magnet for drug activity, prostitution, gang members, thieves and the homeless. Officers respond daily to calls that relate to foreclosed homes.
Atlanta bankruptcy lawyers hope that government officials can come up with more and more innovative programs to get foreclosures off the market. They are dragging down our economy, so the fewer out there, the better.
But for those who are in the foreclosure process or on the cusp, consider meeting with an experienced Atlanta bankruptcy lawyer. Rather than trying to deal with banks alone, a skilled attorney can help you avoid foreclosure or provide alternatives to work with banks to save your house.
If you need to speak to an Atlanta bankruptcy attorney call the DebtStoppers Bankruptcy Law Firm at 800-440-7235 today for a free debt analysis.
More Blog Entries:
New Law Would Allow Georgians to Use Retirement For Mortgage Payments to Avoid Foreclosure: October 14, 2011
Additional Resources:
Atlanta Incentive For Police Officers, Fire Fighters: Latest Effort To Fill Foreclosed Homes, by Harry Bradford, The Huffington Post