2012 -2013 MSHDA S HOMEOWNERSHIP COUNSELING PROGRAM

2012 -2013 MSHDA’s HOMEOWNERSHIP COUNSELING PROGRAM

NATIONAL MORTGAGE SETTLEMENT

NOTICE OF FUNDS AVAILABILITY FOR LEGAL SERVICES

MSHDA’s Homeownership Counseling Program (HCP) is announcing the availability of funding for grants from the National Mortgage Settlement (NMS)up to $1million per year for 3years. Through this funding, the HCP will support proposals designed to:

• Support individuals impacted by the foreclosure crisis.

• Provide free foreclosure-relatedlegal assistance to homeowners throughout the state.

• Increase, sustainor prevent a reduction in a non-profit legal service’s provider’sability to deliver thoughtful, effective foreclosure-related legal services to a growing number of homeowners in need.

• Focus on staffing consistency, implementing best practices in the delivery of services, quality of services provided and positive case resolution.

• A collaborative model is encouraged and subcontracts are permissible. Preference will be given to existing collaborations already providing statewide foreclosure-related legal services.

About the NMS Funds

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette and other participating state Attorneys General entered into a settlement with the five leading bank mortgage servicers. The settlement requires servicers to provide the participating states, including Michigan, up to $25 billion dollars in monetary sanctions and relief. In addition to the money relief, the settlement mandates comprehensive reforms of mortgage loan servicing.

There were four different categories of monetary relief as a result of the settlement - Borrower Payments, Refinance Program, Federal Menu Benefits, and State Payments. A portion of the State Payment funds, made to states to address foreclosure related issues, were appropriated by the Legislature to the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA). Funding in the amount of $15 millionwould be distributed by MSHDA via Notices of Funds Availability (NOFA).

About the Need

Since 2008, legal aid agencies throughout Michigan have been providing expanded legal assistance to homeowners facing foreclosures and training to housing counselors. These services have primarily been funded by Foundations. With the additional funding, legal aid agencies were able to dedicate funding to foreclosure prevention activities and to provide expert legal assistance in every region in the state. Legal Aid agencies were able to increase representation throughout Michigan on the range of issues related to foreclosures – including, predatory and subprime mortgage practices, mortgage fraud and foreclosure litigation, and loan workouts. Throughout the foreclosure crisis, the demographics of those impacted have also changed. Initially many program clients were unsophisticated borrowers with predatory loan products; over time, the majority of clients were previously stable middle-income homeowners who were impacted by the 2008 financial crisis and Michigan’s higher unemployment rates.

Legal Aid agencies recently faced a large cut in federal funding and the initial foundation grants that funded this work from 2008 through 2012 are expiring. Legal aid agencies need resources to continue to provide expanded representation to homeowners facing foreclosure.

Applicant Eligibility

It is MSHDA’s intent to distribute the legal assistance funds through a single statewide contract with an entity that can provide a full range of services—from counsel and advice through court representation in complex legal cases—to households facing foreclosure.

If a collaborative project is proposed, a single institution must be the applicant; the recipient of the award on behalf of the project; and the entity responsible for satisfying grant requirements.

Eligibility is restricted to non-profit legal service providersbased in Michigan that employ licensed attorneys in good standing with the State Bar of Michigan.

Eligible applicants must demonstrate the capacity to administer NMS resources effectively. As part of reviewing applications, HCP will evaluate the status of currently funded projects and past sub-grantee performance. Proposals from applicants with incomplete projects or substantial uncommitted funds may be deferred until future funding rounds.

Applicants must have the ability to report activity and accomplishments as required by the legislation and be able to demonstrate the ability to collect this data and submit reports as required

Funding Priorities

Foreclosure-Related Legal Services

FRLS funds must be used in a manner that increases, sustains or prevents a reduction in a non-profit legal service’s provider’s ability to deliver thoughtful, effective foreclosure-related legal services to a growing number of homeowners in need.

FRLS funds must focus on staffing consistency, implementing best practices in the delivery of services, quality of service and case resolution. Funding should specifically be used to avoid foreclosure wherever possible. The homeowners situation must be thoroughly analyzed to present the best solution, whether that be for a successful retention or transition outcome.

Successful applicants will be expected to use grant funds to hire attorney(s) and legal support staff with the interaction of their work to be focused on preventing foreclosures. Additionally, successful applicants will be expected to demonstrate a statewide network of legal advocates working on foreclosure and related homeownership issues.Permissible activities include:

• Providing legal advice and representation to homeowners facing foreclosure.
• Providing legal advice and representation in cases ancillary to a foreclosure case when the successful resolution of that case is part of a foreclosure prevention or foreclosure remediation strategy.
• Providing technical assistance and support to legal advocates and housing counselors handling foreclosure cases.
• Develop training materials and provide necessary training to carry out the project.

Important Note: A detailed project budget will be required that demonstrates revenues and expenses used to carry out this project. Reports that detail the actual uses of funds; the number of homeowners assisted; and the outcomes achieved will also be required. Applicant must demonstrate the ability to collect this data and submit these reports.

Disbursement of Funds

MSHDA will provide these funds through a single grant-like contract that will leave the details of the provision of legal services to contracting attorneys and will respect the lawyer client relationship between the individual homeowners and their attorneys. To assure that the contracting legal entity has sufficient capacity to provide these services, MSHDA will make contract payments on a prospective basis.

Grant requests may cover a period of more than one calendar year,however grants may be awarded incrementally and renewed annually based upon grantee performance and available funding.

Application Deadline and Process

Interested organizations must complete the attached application and submit electronically no later than 11:59 p.m. on Friday, March 8, 2013. Paper submissions or incomplete applications will not be reviewed. Please note the CHARACTER COUNT LIMIT on certain questions.

Please send all applications and supporting materialsvia email to Tara Gilman at .

Funding decisions will generally be made and announced within 30 days following the application deadline.

Questions

Any questions regarding the NOFA must be submitted in writing and emailed to the attention of Tara Gilman at .

Important Dates & Information

February 8, 2013Legal Services NOFA Announcement

March 8, 2013Application Deadline of 11:59 p.m. on March 8, 2013

April 8, 2013Award Announcement

April 29, 2013Grantee executes and returns Grant Agreement

MSHDA Homeownership Counseling Program

Phone: 517-241-4351

MSHDA’s HOMEOWNERSHIP COUNSELING PROGRAM

NATIONAL MORTGAGE SERVICER SETTLEMENT

2013 Application for Legal Assistance Funding

Please be sure your application tells the story about your organization and how this funding will support your foreclosure program, fill funding gaps not available through existing resources,your expected outcomes,

number of homeowners benefited and community impacts.

1. Organization Name

Contact Person:

Address:

Telephone:

Fax:

Contact Email Address:

1. Is your organization now, or has been in the past, a MSHDA-contracted legal service provider?

Yes☐

No☐If no, please STOP here. Your organization is not eligible to apply.

1. Please describe your agency’s current/past legal services contract:

1. Please list your agency’s current geographic service area:

1. Please list your agency’s proposed geographic service area (if different):

1. Please indicate the dollar amount of funds requested $.

1. Please provide a detailed project budget that demonstrates revenues and expenses used to carry out this project if funds from the NMS were received. Describe or provide samples of the types of reports that will be used to detail the actual uses of funds; the number of homeowners assisted; and the outcomes achieved.(If attachments are used they MUST be identified as an exhibit in the comment section) EXAMPLE: Attachment Exhibit A. Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe the qualifications of your organization for undertaking this project including your organization’s quantitative and qualitative experience with legal representation of clients, key demographic served and a description of all current services or programs offered. Specifically address your organization’s capacity to provide in court representation to households facing a foreclosure related legal matter. Plans to target funding to underserved geographic areas or populations should also be noted. Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe any partnerships you have established that are designed to help homeowners facing default in order to resolve their situation. Examples may include partnerships or events with task forces, housing counselors, financial institutions or servicers. Only describe partnerships or initiatives that your agency has actively participated in.Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe your outreach and marketing strategy for identifying, marketing to, and attracting homeowners who are presently, or at-risk of becoming delinquent or in default on their mortgages. Include examples of partnerships developed to market your foreclosure program.Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe your organization’s staffing structure and strategy for recruiting, orienting, training and compensating any newly hired attorney/staff under this program. Also give consideration to caseload size and managerial oversight. Maximum 2,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe your organization’s intake and triage procedures, including the organization’s expected response time to each homeowner’s request for legal assistance. Describe any improvements that your organization has made to its processes over time and how long the current process/system has been in place.Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe your organization’s staff roles in the foreclosure process and how time will be allocated to foreclosure prevention activities. Maximum 2,000 characters with spaces.

1. Describe your organization’s experience administering a foreclosure legal assistance program. Describe procedures your organization has put in place to monitor and improve the quality of services provided by your program. Where possible and appropriate, quantify your efforts to measure the impact of any modifications you made to the program. Maximum 5,000 characters with spaces.

1. If this application involves subgrants to additional partners, describe your organization’s experience acting as a lead agency with other branch offices or partnering agencies. Include a description of processes in place and provide details related to your experience for each of the following: 1) managing and passing funds through to your network; 2) determining eligibility of partnering agencies to participate in your program; 3) experience in managing contracts; 4) experience in providing training and technical assistance; 5) experience in data collection and reporting; 6) ensuring compliance; 7) sharing best practices; 8) monitoring financial management capacity of sub-grantees. Answer each component of the question; fully describing each section. Maximum 2000 characters with spaces.

NOTE: If you are partnering with another organization to submit a Collaborative Application, in addition to providing us with all of the above, please also provide:

1. A letter from the organization (on organizational letterhead) briefly describing their mission, acknowledging and briefly describing their role in the partnership.

Please be aware that the Primary Applicant is the responsible party when it comes to meeting all of the qualifications including submitting the matching funds.

1. Managing and Passing Funds Through to your Network:

2.Determining eligibility of partnering agencies to participate in your program:

3. Experience in managing contracts:

4. Experience in providing training and technical assistance:

5. Experience in data collection and reporting:

6. Ensuring compliance:

7. Sharing best practices:

8. Monitoring financial management capacity of sub-grantees:

13. Described howyour organization ensures quality control of services offered and adherence to program requirements. Include a description of each of the following: 1) procedures for determining a client’s eligibility for legal assistance; procedures for client file documentation; procedures for reviewing client or subcontractor funding/billing requests; 2) consequences for non-compliance; 3) procedures for remedying compliance issues; and 4) any follow-up that occurs after a compliance-related issue is raised.Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

1.Procedures for determining a client’s eligibility for legal assistance; procedures for client file documentation; procedures for reviewing client or subcontractor funding/billing requests:

2. Consequences for non-compliance:

3. Procedures for remedying compliance issues:

4. Any follow-up that occurs after a compliance-related issue is raised:

1. Describe your organization’s system of storing and disposing of personally-identifiable information.Maximum

3,000 characters with spaces.

15.If your organization has had external evaluations of your foreclosure prevention program, please provide a summary of the evaluation. Maximum 3,000 characters with spaces.

NMS LEGAL NOFAPage 1