Public Employee Press

Municipal Employees Housing Program
One-stop affordable housing services

• Union saves their home from foreclosure
  

The Municipal Employees Housing Program provides one-stop affordable housing services for DC 37 members.

Any member who is a prospective homebuyer of a one or two-family home, a condominium or cooperative apartment in the five boroughs can use a Municipal Employees Legal Services lawyer for the real estate closing. MELS also provides legal representation for members and retirees who may face foreclosure, eviction or other housing matters.

MELS is the DC 37’s free legal service for active and retired members. (Members of Local 375 should contact PELS, that local’s plan, and active members of Local 371 should call 212-777-9000.) MELS and MEHP are unique benefitsthe union provides to protect members from being scammed by unscrupulous lenders or real estate agents.

While members can use an attorney of their choosing, MELS can save participants about $1,000 or more on home purchase closing fees and can provide an attorney if one is needed for Housing Court or foreclosure.

On finding a property, an MEHP counselor will have the member contact MELS and arrange to meet with an attorney, who will review and negotiate the terms of the contract of sale, review the property inspection report, if any, before the member signs it, and order the necessary title searches. The MELS lawyer will also provide legal advice to the member and attend the closing where the new homeowner will receive legal title and keys.

MEHP is a partnership ofDC 37, the city Housing Preservation and Development Dept., Neighborhood Housing Services, a nonprofit homeownership organization, and Amalgamated Bank. MEHP offers DC 37 members credit counseling and repair, savings plans, refinancing and reverse mortgages. Qualified homebuyers can also apply for FirstHome grants of up to $24,000 toward down payment or closing costs and mortgages from any of the dozen of banks and lenders that work with the union program.

“The collaboration of MELS and MEHP serves the members of DC 37 by making the opportunity of obtaining affordable housing a reality for them,” said MELS Executive Director Joan Beranbaum.

“Not only does MELS provide free representation in real estate closings for homes purchased through MEHP, but we work closely with MEHP to find alternate housing for those who have lost their homes and to preserve the homes of those members in danger of eviction or foreclosure,” she said.

For more information on MEHP, call 212-815-1814 to speak to a counselor. To make an appointment with a MELS lawyer, call 212-815-1800.