Southern California Priest Joins Forces With Community Group To Keep Flock From Losing Homes To Foreclosure

In Pacoima, California, CNN reports:

• Father John Lasseigne has never owned a home, but he's become one of the key saviors for those who face losing their house. As banks move in to take over homes in foreclosure, this priest is stepping in to stop them. [...] Lasseigne is the priest of Mary Immaculate Catholic Church in the Southern California community of Pacoima, where one in every nine homes is in some stage of foreclosure. He says the people in this community were targeted by predatory lenders and given loans they never should have qualified for.

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• Lasseigne began to preach to his congregation about the power of community organization. He teamed up with the One LA community group, and together they started teaching Foreclosure 101 to his flock. "There are hundreds, if not thousands, of families in my immediate neighborhood at risk of losing their homes," he said.

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• Many of the home owners here, with the help of Lasseigne and One LA, will receive finance preparation to better understand the fine print on loans. Lasseigne says that sometimes, people here didn't know what they were signing onto when they got loans. [...] He's met with more than 300 residents in recent months and brought them together with banks to modify their loans.

For the story, see Priest becomes savior in foreclosure crisis.