SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced a $1 million California Homeowner Bill of Rights implementation grant on Thursday to The National Housing Law Project to provide training to state consumer and housing attorneys.
The grant is meant to maximize consumer benefits from the HBOR, which took effect at the beginning of the year. The HBOR is a set of laws extending mortgage and foreclosure protections to California borrowers and homeowners. The laws guarantee struggling homeowners a reliable point of contact at their lender, restrict dual-track foreclosures, require loan services to document their right to foreclosure and impose civil penalties on fraudulently signed mortgage documents, Harris said.
"Californians were hit hard by the mortgage crisis and many people are still struggling to stay in their homes," Harris said. "The California Homeowner Bill of Rights gives borrowers more opportunities to stay in their homes, and this grant will help make sure the law is applied across the state and that everyone gets the protection they are entitled to."
The National Housing Law Project and its partners will use the grant to train more than 800 lawyers, create a library of litigation materials to help materials maximize HBOR benefits, provide support in cases that raise important legal issues, produce a report to analyze the compliance problems and statewide impact of the HBOR, and provide training to consumer and housing attorneys on how to maximize the protections of the HBOR.
The National Housing Law Project will partner with Tenants Together, the National Consumer Law Center, and the Western Center on Law and Poverty to implement the grant.
Funds provided through the grant were secured by Harris' office through the $25 billion National Mortgage Settlement.
Calif. AG announces $1M grant for attorney-training
