WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. — Need help staying in your home?
A big pot of money is allowing attorneys to do just that for families facing foreclosure and even eviction.
This time last year, Marissa and Thomas Heavener were on the brink of being thrown out of their place in Crawfordsville, Arkansas.
“We got an eviction letter, I think it was like in October of last year,” Marissa said.
The Heaveners were near the end of a three-year contract with their landlord. Once that was up, they’d own the property free and clear.
They’d already paid thousands, but hard times caused the couple to miss a few payments.
Marissa said, “We thought we had a good relationship with the landlord and we didn’t have any idea that she would do that to us.”
Legal Aid of Arkansas worked out a settlement.
The Heaveners got caught up and officially became homeowners in March.
The agency has been able to help thousands of families like the Heaveners recently due to additional funding.
Arkansas used part of the money it got from the National Mortgage Settlement to create the Housing Rights and Consumer Protection Program.
“It’s allowed us to represent substantially more clients than we otherwise could have reached because of our limited resources,” Legal Aid of Arkansas Executive Director Lee Richardson said.
Legal Aid used the money to hire more lawyers who focus solely on housing issues like foreclosures, and especially landlord tenant disputes.
Richardson said he wants more Arkansans to take advantage of the free services. He added residents need to know when to ask for help.
“We definitely would ask that people call us as soon as they start having a problem and not after the problem manifests itself to the point where it’s possibly too late for us to be able to step in and provide them meaningful assistance,” he said.
To reach the Help Line at Legal Aid of Arkansas call, 1-800-952-9243.
Memphis Fair Housing Center (Memphis Area Legal Aid) is available at (901) 432-4663, and MS Legal Services (1-800-498-1804) in Mississippi is a statewide intake hotline.
