Douglas Byrum and his wife Ruth came to Justine PETERSEN in September of 2016 seeking help to save their home from foreclosure. Douglas had been recently laid off from his job at Granite City Steel, and his wife Ruth was also unemployed. The Byrums worked with one of JP’s foreclosure prevention counselors to apply for the Illinois Hardest Hit Fund. HHF is a program that is available to Illinois residents that have fallen onto hardships and need funding to not lose their homes.
Their counselor made sure that their application and supplemental paperwork were submitted to the Illinois Housing Development Authority with enough time to save their home from foreclosure. By doing this, Douglas and Ruth were awarded a reinstatement loan of over $4,000 to catch them up on their mortgage payments. Additionally, the Byrums were approved for a 5 year forgivable loan on January 6th, 2017. This forgivable loan allows for Douglas and Ruth to stay in their home for the next five years, and once that time frame is over they no longer have to pay back their reinstatement loan. By working with their HHF counselor and their dedication to the process, the Byrums will have a safe place to call home.
“Frederica was very helpful – and Justine PETERSEN saved our home. I would recommend your office to anyone who needs assistance saving their home, everyone was so friendly and helpful. They made this process so easy for us!”
