The Speaker’s Taskforce On Preventing Home Foreclosures – or STOP – has a set of recommendations. Assembly Speaker Mike Sheridan convened the panel of lawmakers, lenders and consumer advocates to address the growing foreclosure crisis in Wisconsin. “One of the things I heard early on by talking to my friends from the banking industry is, you know, they don’t want to foreclose on these homes, they want people to stay in their homes,” Sheridan said. “They’re looking just as diligently as we are to try to find solutions to that. It does them no good to get a bunch of houses.”
“I can tell you the members varied viewpoints and areas of expertise have led to sensible, centered ideas that clearly address problems relating . . . to foreclosures in Wisconsin,” said Sheridan. “I’m pleased with the recommendations they have made.” Taskforce member Dan Imhoff is Vice President and Residential Lending Manager for the State Bank of Cross Plains. “Our efforts will not end here, as a group we are looking at continuing our meetings,” said Imhoff. “We do feel this is work in progress.”
“The economy, job loss, layoffs, medical expenses and divorce, all play a big role why people go into foreclosures,” said task force chairman, Representative Leon Young of Milwaukee. “In Milwaukee, a big issue was predatory lending and sub-prime loans.” Young said members agreed on four legislative recommendations, including education about mortgages and foreclosures, licensing of appraisers, requiring that county clerks of court notify municipal clerks of abandoned homes, and requiring mortgage brokers to put a client’s financial interests above their own.
“We all know someone who’s been impacted by this crisis, and the crisis has impacted all of us, because it weakens our economy,” said Sheridan. “Wisconsin stands to lose five billion dollars in revenue if the trend continues.” Rep. Young said foreclosures in the state could reach 25,000 or more this year