Washington, D.C.–U.S. Conference of Mayors President Miami Mayor Manny Diaz and ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis today joined leaders from major cities across the country to urge states to enact stronger laws requiring mandatory settlement conferences between lenders and borrowers prior to foreclosure sales. The parties advocated for measures similar to those that have already been enacted in Philadelphia, where lenders and borrowers are required to attempt to negotiate a mutually agreeable refinancing or modification of the mortgage that results in a borrower staying in his or her home. Mayor Diaz and Bertha Lewis of ACORN were joined on a conference call by Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter, New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and Oakland City Admin...

Statement from Maria Polanco, ACORN Vice-President:

"ACORN members across the country are inspired by President Obama's historic nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the pending vacancy on the United States Supreme Court.  Judge Sotomayor brings a wealth of not only judicial experience, but experience in the real world as well.  As a longtime practitioner of the law as private litigator, public prosecutor, and judge, Sonia Sotomayor has a profound understanding of how the law affects real families in real situations.

"Judge Sotomayor's incredible history of rising to the top of the legal profession from humble roots resonates deeply with ACORN members who work every day to open up opportunities for those in challenging circumstances.  Coming from an immigrant...

Low-income families, public health will benefit enormously from universal paid sick days standard

(Washington, DC) – The three in four low-wage workers and 48% of all private sector workers that lack paid sick days to take care of themselves and loved ones have reason to celebrate today, as Rep. Rosa DeLauro and Sen. Ted Kennedy are introducing the Healthy Families Act for the 111th Congress.  The HFA creates a new minimum labor standard for the 21st century by giving workers the right to accrue up to seven days of paid sick leave.  The leave can be used to care for oneself, to care for sick loved ones, or to attend court related to sexual assault or domestic violence.  107 countries worldwide provide a universal paid sick leave standard, and the United States lags far be...

(Washington, DC) – ACORN has written a letter to the Congressional Oversight Panel requesting a hearing to gauge TARP recipients' compliance with the Obama Administration's "Making Home Affordable" foreclosure-prevention plan.  In a letter to the Panel's chairwoman, Professor Elizabeth Warren, ACORN noted that mortgage servicing companies are notoriously opposed to any sort of transparency and accountability in their foreclosure protocols.  The Congressional Oversight Panel is uniquely positioned to provide this accountability and to ensure that the Obama Administration's goal of preventing 3 to 4 million unnecessary foreclosures in the coming years is realized.  This will require not just a commitment from the mortgage CEOs, but also a thorough and deep implementa...

Media Matters shows Media Scapegoats Group Instead of Using Substantive Analysis

Washington, D.C.--Today, Media Matters released a new report showing that when discussing major news stories, conservatives in the media have repeatedly resorted to blaming ACORN in place of substantive analysis of causes and solutions, even where the organization has little or nothing to do with the issue. The report can be viewed at: mediamatters.org/items/200904070005

"We are disappointed, but not surprised, in the report's findings," said Bertha Lewis, CEO and Chief Organizer of ACORN. "ACORN has watched over the years as the right wing has attempted to blame us for everything from the 2008 financial crisis to voter fraud. We hope that this report serves as a wake-up call that we mu...

In the first effort of its kind, ACORN's survey of all major mortgage servicing companies finds broad participation in Obama’s Foreclosure Plan

In the first effort of its kind, ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) surveyed all major mortgage servicing companies in the nation, and has found that at least 76% of outstanding mortgage loans are serviced by companies who have committed to implementing the Obama plan. ACORN expects further progress in the coming weeks as the Obama Administration releases the contracts mortgage servicing companies will sign to participate in the program. ACORN will continue to encourage all mortgage servicers to join the program, with plans to target those outlier companies that refuse to engage in sensible foreclosure prevention.Just a ...

NEW ORLEANS, La. - ACORN members, thrilled with President Obama's plan announced yesterday to fight the foreclosure crisis, are calling for binding state foreclosure moratoriums until the plan is firing on all cylinders, including Congressional adoption of the bankruptcy protections called for by the President.  Many major lenders have already agreed to abide by a moratorium in the coming weeks, including Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, Suntrust, PNC, Goldman Sachs, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac. These voluntary moratoriums, while welcome and sensible, only cover a small portion of the troubled loans that may slip into foreclosure in the immediate future.

"President Obama hit a home run with his proposal to help up to 9 million families avoid foreclosure ...

PHOENIX, Ariz. – ACORN members are celebrating President Obama's announcement today of the "Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan," the first federal effort to fight foreclosures since the crisis that brought down the economy began two years ago.

For years, ACORN has been advocating repeal of the ban on judicial modifications, a central plank in the Obama plan that Congress should immediately take up in a must-pass bill and get to the President in March. Obama also proposes administrative actions to spend $75 billion of the Financial Stabilization Fund on facilitating modifications and to require companies receiving taxpayer assistance to use a rational foreclosure prevention protocol to prevent unnecessary foreclosures. These three planks are absolutely essential to repai...

WASHINGTON, DC - ACORN members are celebrating the federal government's first tangible step toward tackling the foreclosure crisis that lies at the heart of the nation's economic struggles.  Treasury Secretary Geithner announced today that the Obama Administration will spend $50 billion to prevent foreclosures by modifying unaffordable loans to affordable terms. This comes as a welcome recognition that the trillions of dollars being shipped to Wall Street will not rescue our economy or restore credit liquidity without stabilizing the housing market by preventing the huge glut of unnecessary foreclosures stemming from predatory and unaffordable mortgages.  With more than 2.3 million properties hit with a foreclosure filing in 2008, and economists predicting 9 million foreclosures ...

Oakland "Miracle" Shows Better Path Than "Hope For Homeowners'" Utter Failure

OAKLAND, Calif. – At 6:00 in the morning on Wednesday, February 4, more than 30 members of ACORN gathered at the home of Eddie and Martha Daniels in West Oakland, armed with prayers, cell phones, and the hope that Wednesday would not be a day in which yet another family who had done no wrong was claimed as a victim of the raging foreclosure crisis.  Since 2006, the Daniels had paid their rent each month to their landlord, who had not told them that he was not in turn paying the mortgage on time.  The landlord's lender had foreclosed on the property and terminated the lease, and on Wednesday the Sheriff was scheduled to come to their home and evict the Daniels, a family on the verge ...