Wayne County Pushing Payment Plans Ahead Of Foreclosure Deadine
More than 60,000 homes in Detroit could be foreclosed on by March 31st.
Wayne County officials are pushing payment options for tens of thousands of residents who are behind on property taxes and facing a looming foreclosure deadline.
Wayne County sent out 72,000 foreclosure notices – 62,000 of them to Detroiters – and about a third of them to people who live in homes they own.
They face an end-of-the month deadline to make some kind of payment arrangement.
Deputy Wayne County Treasurer Eric Sabree says a recent law enacted by the state legislature could help those people stay in their home.
The law drops the interest rate charged for some taxes from 18 percent to only six percent.
“It allows individuals to pay off delinquencies, multiple years of delinquencies, at six percent interest,” Sabree said. “And pay their current taxes at the same time. So the theory is that in a few years the current taxes will still be paid and the delinquencies will be caught up.”
He says about 8,000 people have taken advantage of the lower rates and paid some or all of their property taxes.
But he says at least 10,000 other homeowners have yet to make any payment arrangements.
