While foreclosure aid is hard to come by these days, Illinois borrowers have some strong advocates on their side.  Attorney General Lisa Madigan has fought to crack down on predatory lending and help homeowners wrecked by subprime mortgages. Cook County Sherriff Tom Dart has done his part to protect the tenants that often become collateral damage during the foreclosure process. Today, the Chicago-based MacArthur Foundation became the latest local ally:

Saying it is well aware of the problem in its own backyard of Chicago, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced a $68 million investment in local grants and low-interest loans to help stop the rising number of home foreclosures.

The foundation said its initiative, which it believes is the largest effort by a private foundation to address the foreclosure crisis, should help 10,000 households, including counseling to 6,000 borrowers and preventing 2,700 foreclosures by 2010. It also will offer legal counseling to renters affected by foreclosure.

The money will be routed in all the right directions, too. Ron Grzywinski's ShoreBank will receive $15 million to broaden their innovative Rescue Loan and Prevention Program, which provides borrowers who took out adjustable rate mortgages -- the majoirty of whom would have qualified for concentional loans -- an opportunity to refinance into fixed mortgages at reasonable rates. Another $9 million will be funneled to the Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago so they can expand thei $150-million mortgage program. The Woodstock Institute will receive grants equalling $1.5 million to continue its in-depth research on Chicago foreclosures. Even the Center for Responsible Lending will get some scratch to lobby on behalf of consumer protections.

Overall, this looks like a great investment.  Kudos to the folks at MacArthur.