By Helen Klein
With an eye to giving area residents the tools they need to make wise real estate-related decisions, one local organization has started a program of monthly educational seminars. Community Board 17 will host the seminars at the board office, 39 Remsen Avenue, on the second Thursday of the month from 6 to 8 p.m. The first seminar was held earlier this month, and the next one will take place on February 14th. Other dates when seminars are scheduled are March 13th, April 10th, May 8th and June 12th. All will feature presentations by not-for-profit organizations which can offer advice on a wide range of issues. The program is an effort of the board’s Housing Committee and is intended to offer insights into a variety of housing related issues – from foreclosure prevention to the sub-prime mortgage market and predatory lending. “In our community, we have a number of people in foreclosure,” explained Terrance Joseph, the chairperson of the Housing Committee. “The fact that the housing market doesn’t seem to be turning around means that more people will go into foreclosure or have difficulty paying their mortgage. This means more people will lose their homes, more homes will be boarded up and property values will go down. We can’t sit back and wait for things to happen. We have to get going early.” Trisha Ocona, a community member of the Housing Committee who came up with the idea of putting on the seminars, said she was inspired by her concern about the number of foreclosures in the community. “There’s been enough talking,” she asserted. “It was time to do something.” In particular, said Ocona, she wanted to provide people with an understanding of the complexities of the real estate market. “A lot of homeowners who are facing foreclosure,” Ocona noted, “didn’t know what the terms meant when they signed their mortgage documents. They were just told, sign here. “Statistics show that people in foreclosure will end up in foreclosure again because they didn’t understand what they had done,” she added. It is this sort of situation that Ocona says the board hopes to short-circuit by providing community residents with the data they need to make informed choices. But, she stressed, “We don’t just want people in foreclosure to attend. We want first-time home-buyers so the problem doesn’t happen to them. We want current homeowners. We want the youth to get involved. We want seniors to come out.” The sessions will combine information sessions with the opportunity for attendees to raise issues that concern them, said Ocona. The February session will feature speakers from the city’s Department of Housing, Preservation and Development, said Ocona. For further information, call the board office, 718-467-3536.
