REBA Pro Bono Opportunities

For more information about the REBA pro bono programs, or to learn more about how you can volunteer your services, contact Andrea Hardy at hardy@reba.net.

Department of Neighborhood Development Pro Bono Program

The Association’s Affordable Housing Committee teamed up with the City of Boston Department of Neighborhood Development (DND) to provide pro bono legal counsel to qualifying homeowners facing foreclosure. This program is available to homeowners whose income does not exceed 120% of the area mean income for the Boston area. DND will prescreen applicants and refer qualifying homeowners to REBA. REBA has an immediate need for any lawyers willing to donate their time and a specific need for lawyers whose practice experience includes Federal Bankruptcy Court experience, particularly on Chapter 7 matters, lender renegotiation, TILA and/or RESPA issues. Multilingual lawyers are particularly welcomed.

Boston Community Capital Pro Bono Program  REBA has teamed up with Boston Community Capital (BCC) in their Stabilizing Urban Neighborhoods Initiative (SUN), which provides support to families affected by the foreclosure crisis in Massachusetts. SUN is designed to stop the displacement of families before evictions occur and to prevent the neighborhood destabilization caused by vacant and abandoned properties.

We invite all REBA members to volunteer their services as a pro bono attorney for homeowners to purchase their foreclosed or pre-foreclosed properties. We anticipate receiving one-to-two case referrals per month. It is unlikely that any one REBA volunteer would handle more than one or two pro bono matters in the course of a year.

Visit www.bostoncommunitycapital.org for more information on the Stabilizing Urban Neighborhoods Initiative. Contact Kathy Schreck to volunteer at kschreck@auramortgage.com or (617)933-5876.

Members of the Real Estate Bar Association can volunteer to mediate borrower/lender residential foreclosure issues in the context of federal bankruptcy proceedings. The REBA/Bankruptcy Court foreclosure mediation project is a perfect opportunity for our lawyer members to use their real estate skills, on a pro bono basis, to help Massachusetts homeowners facing the loss of their homes.

Chief Judge Frank J. Bailey of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts welcomed REBA’s volunteer effort, as so many individual bankruptcy cases involve mortgage-related disputes that would be better addressed by mediation than litigation.

Department of Justice Pro Bono Program

The United States Attorney’s Office Mortgage Fraud group has asked REBA members for pro bono support for tenants or property owners who have become unwittingly involved in mortgage fraud cases. These buyers and renters, innocent collateral victims of fraud, often learn that their property or condominium unit is subject to foreclosure with little or no advance notice.

The U.S. Attorneys’ Office cannot give legal advice, and in any event, is not generally familiar with real estate law. REBA has agreed to provide independent representation to these individuals by assigning them a pro bono REBA member volunteer. We anticipate receiving one-to-two case referrals per month. It is unlikely that any one REBA volunteer would handle more than a single pro bono matter in the course of a year.

This program will provide our members with an opportunity to collaborate with the U.S. Attorneys’ Office, while providing much needed legal assistance to mortgage fraud victims.