New Legislation Works to Address Foreclosure Crisis

On Wednesday, Jan. 16, Golden Valley resident Rose McGee was again at the State Capitol. But this time, she wasn’t protesting Citimortgage or Fannie Mae. She wasn't holding a sign urging mortgage giants to put an end to foreclosures and evictions.

Instead, McGee was at the Capitol to witness the introduction of a piece of legislation that may change her life, and the lives of others like her, forever.

Rep. Mike Freiberg (DFL-Golden Valley), along with Rep. Karen Clark (DFL-Minneapolis) and State Rep. Raymond Dehn (DFL-Minneapolis) unveiled the legislation at an 11 a.m. press conference Wednesday.

McGee’s attorneys from Drewes Law Firm, and members of the Northside Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), Jewish Community Action (JCA), Occupy Homes MN were also there.

“I want to be very helpful to constituents and Rose lives a few blocks away from me, so I wanted to help her as much as I can and also help other people in the district from suffering a similar situation,” Freiberg said, noting that the new proposed law includes a prohibition on what’s called "dual tracking."

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Dual tracking, Freiberg said, occurs when representatives from a mortgage company work with the homeowner to refinance the loan, while, simultaneously, someone else in the company begins mortgage foreclosure proceedings.

“It doesn’t seem like a fair business practice,” Freiberg said.

Minnesota is following in the footsteps of California, McGee said. On Jan. 1, the California Homeowner Bill of Rights went into effect--a law that makes dual tracking illegal.

For McGee, a victim of dual tracking, the Minnesota legislation is validation for the efforts she undertook during a year-long fight to save her home.

"My story energized several groups to come together," McGee said. "The more folks we can have on the same page about the issue, the better."