Funk's Front Porch

Foreclosure Mitigation Toolkit for Communities

The Federal Reserve is collaborating with other regulators, community groups, policy organizations, financial institutions and public officials to identify solutions to prevent unnecessary foreclosures and their negative effect.

The goal of the Foreclosure Mitigation Toolkit is to provide resources to assist communities in addressing the current turmoil in the housing market and minimize the impact of foreclosures on neighborhoods. Web links and local resources are included.

Visit the Toolkit at: http://www.KansasCityFed.org/comaffrs/foreclosure/foreclosuretoolkit.htm?ealert=Foreclose1001

Help to Prevent Foreclosures

Several local community groups have joined forces to help Kansas Citians who might be facing foreclosure on their homes. LINC, MARC, One Economy and NeighborWorks America have created KCForeclosureHelp.org, a site with information about how to avoid foreclosures. They also have a toll free number: 1 (888) 995-HOPE.

Subprime Loan Report

The Federal Reserve Bank has had an in-depth examination of the subprime loan situation in the Kansas City metro area.  Read the latest report.

 

Mayor Responds to News Report About Minor Home Repair Program

News from the Mayor's Office

City of Kansas City, Mo.

www.kcmo.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 13, 2008

Mayor Responds to News Report About Minor Home Repair Program

Mayor Mark Funkhouser responded today to a front-page story about Kansas City’s "dormant" minor home repair program.

"As a city official, I feel responsible for how the city has let down Odie Curry," Mayor Funkhouser said, referring to a disabled Kansas City resident whose unsuccessful efforts to obtain funds through the program have left him without wheelchair access to his own home.

Mr. Curry’s situation is a result of the city’s budgeting practices, Mayor Funkhouser explains.

"For years we have relied on accounting tricks to balance our budget, instead of making strategic choices and crafting budgets that reflect our values," he said. "The result is that important services – services approved by the Mayor and Council – often get shortchanged. These cuts are technically off the books, but they are very real to people who depend on city government to make their communities livable."

These cuts have the greatest impact on the city’s most vulnerable citizens, Funkhouser said.

"Mr. Curry doesn’t have the Friends of the Zoo lobbying City Hall to not cut a program he depends on," the Mayor said. "All he has is elected officials, whose job it is to set priorities and make sure they’re carried through."

On Wednesday, Mayor Funkhouser offered his recommendations for the Fiscal Year 2008-09 budget. He proposed strategic cuts in some areas and increases in others so as to fund the programs and services that are most vital to Kansas Citians. The full text of his recommendations can be found online at kcmo.org.

For more information contact Kendrick Blackwood in the Mayor’s office, 816-513-3513.

Annual Housing Report

Last Wednesday, members of the Housing Policy and Oversight Committee presented its annual report to the City Council's Housing Committee. This report, which can be downloaded from the link provided below, offers a number of recommendations for the Mayor to carry out in the coming year with regards to housing.

Download cit_advisory_committee_2.08.PDF

More good info from the Federal Reserve Bank, this time of St Louis. This article explores how neighborhoods can preserve progress when foreclosed and problem properties start showing up.

- ME

Ten Magazine

Ten is a magazine released quarterly by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. It offers highly readable reports on the often complicated economic research that goes on at that institution. It's also a must-read of the Policy Analysis team.

We're currently working our way through the winter issue. It contains a very interesting article about forums the Kansas City Fed has held here, at the Kauffman Foundation, about home foreclosure issues.

- ME

Secretary Paulson's Comments on Home Foreclosures and Mortgage Relief

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson was in Kansas City yesterday for a town hall meeting about the Bush administration's mortgage-relief plan. Click here for the full text of his comments.

- ME

Homelessness Summit

I attended a meeting on Tuesday at police headquarters regarding a proposed summit on homelessness. The summit is still in the early planning stages, but the goal will be to educate area policy makers about the issues and challenges associated with homelessness and to devise progressive policies for addressing them. Ideally, this event would occur in late fall or early summer next year. Our next planning meeting is scheduled for January.

- JM

THE MORTGAGE CRISIS: ECONOMIC AND FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR METRO AREAS

The Policy Analysis Team recently read with interest a report prepared for The United States Conference of Mayors and The Council for the New American City entitled "The Mortgage Crisis: Economic and Fiscal Implications for Metro Areas." The report details how the recent real estate bubble, during which property values rose at unprecedented rates, led to a prolifieration of sub-prime loans. These loans, in turn, lead to an increase in foreclosures. The report warns of economic impacts to metro areas such as property value declines, fewer new home starts and decreases in government revenue.

Read thwe report here.