HUD unveils program to help foreclosure-ridden areas

HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development unveiled a program today aimed at helping communities badly hit by the foreclosure crisis avoid sweeping vulture investors. The “National First Look Program” will offer select state and local governments a right of first refusal on foreclosed homes, before they’re made available to private buyers. The benefit of this, said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, is that it may help communities preserve buildings and put them to use based on the area’s specific needs. “Local communities will now get an exclusive option to buy foreclosed properties in targeted neighborhoods so they can turn the homes into affordable housing or, in some cases, tear them down,” Donovan said. This “will help rebuild neighborhoods that have been struggling with blight and declining home values due to foreclosures.” TRD

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