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foreclosures
Quick Hit
by Matthew Blake
4:41pm
Wed May 16
8 comments

Protesters Call For Eviction Moratorium (VIDEO)

As part of the build up to Sunday's NATO summit protest, Occupy Chicago marched to Daley Plaza in Chicago today with a focus on foreclosures. Speakers demanded that Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart implement a one-year moratorium on evicting homeowners who face foreclosure.

The specific demand was partly answered by the sheriff’s office, with Dart Deputy Chief of Staff Dana Wright showing up at the rally. Wright pledged that Dart would meet with two Occupy delegates this afternoon and suggested that a later public meeting could take place. Read more »

Quick Hit
by Progress Illinois
6:23pm
Tue May 15
1 comment

Guest Article: South Suburban MoveOn Group Rallies Against Illegal Home Foreclosures

The following is a guest article from Esther Allman, of Frankfort, IL, on behalf of The South Suburban MoveOn Council.

Intent on exposing Bank of America's fraudulent foreclosure practices, over 60 men, women, and children joined the South Suburban MoveOn Council as it protested at the Bank of America (BOA) in Matteson, IL last Wednesday. Armed with signs revealing the shoddy business dealings of the bank, people lined Cicero Avenue to enlighten passing motorists about the ongoing nature of the mortgage crisis.
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PI Original
by Matthew Blake
4:47pm
Thu May 10
2 comments

Occupy Chicago Outlines NATO Protests (VIDEO)

Activism

Occupy Chicago says thousands of protesters will go to Chicago next week before the city hosts the NATO summit, May 20 and 21. While Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel views the summit as raising Chicago’s profile, Occupy thinks the event will call attention to their concerns and invigorate the Occupy Wall Street movement that started last fall.

Quick Hit
by Progress Illinois
4:43pm
Mon May 7

Op-Ed: South Suburban Residents To Protest Fraudulent Foreclosures This Week

The following was written by Mike Reed of the South Suburban MoveOn Council.

Citizens who are concerned about the huge increases in home foreclosures in Illinois are meeting at the Bank of America, 4800 Southwick Drive (Rt. 30 and Cicero Ave.) Matteson, at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday to speak against the often illegal practices of mortgagers—and in support of Illinois House Bill 5665, which they hope will pass through the legislature and help put an end to the problem.

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Quick Hit
by Ashlee Rezin
4:46pm
Fri May 4

Foreclosures In Chicago Among Nation's Highest As Vacant Properties Plague Neighborhoods

Rockford and the Chicago area are experiencing some of the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, with Chicago's figure being more twice that of the national average at one in 107 housing units, according to data released by Realty Trac last week. 

As foreclosures continue to plague the city and surrounding areas, the vacant properties left in their wake are wreaking havoc on the safety and security of their respective neighborhoods. In April, a dead body was found in a vacant house in Humboldt Park, leaving neighbors wondering why the property wasn’t maintained -- and prompting Action Now to hold a rally in front of the building.

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Quick Hit
by Steven Ross Johnson
12:42pm
Wed Apr 11
1 comment

Harvey Residents, Advocates Take Vacant Property Debris To City Hall

Housing advocates took to the streets in the south suburban city of Harvey Monday afternoon to protest against what they claim have been the various problems that have developed as a result of the growing number of abandoned homes seen throughout their community over the past several years.

More than 20 demonstrators, which included residents and community activists led by the group Harvey Residents Organized for Change, gathered outside of the town's City Hall prior to the start of that night’s city council meeting to present Mayor Eric Kellogg and city council members with debris the group collected from three abandoned homes located on a block the group said had as many as 11 vacant houses.

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Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
11:59am
Tue Mar 27

Housing Crisis Continues To Wreak Havoc On Minority Communities, Wealth

More Chicagoland homeowners in communities of color are underwater compared to predominantly white neighborhoods, a new report from the Woodstock Institute shows, and some housing advocates say they aren’t surprised.

Overall, nearly one in four residential properties in the Chicago metropolitan area has a negative amount of equity, meaning the homeowner owes more than the worth of the home, according to the report, “Struggling to Staying Afloat: Negative Equity in Communities of Color in the Chicago Six County Region.”  

That comes out to be about $25 billion of negative equity in the Chicagoland region.
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Quick Hit
by Progress Illinois
1:50pm
Tue Feb 28

Op-Ed: State House Bill Addresses Fraudulent Foreclosures

The following was written by Mike Reed of Sheridan, IL, courtesy of MoveOn.org.

State Representative Constance Howard (D-Chicago), working in conjunction with the NAACP’s Far South Suburban branch, introduced on February 15 a bill in the state legislature which would make fraudulent foreclosures in Illinois a crime, with the perpetrators facing both criminal and civil consequences.

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