Firm declines Lynn foreclosure mediation offer

LYNN – A major arbitration agency has decided not to handle foreclosure mediation under a new city law, but city attorneys and mediation advocates said it will not seriously delay local efforts to keep residents in their homes.American Arbitration Association cited, in part, “…potentially substantial administrative obligations…” in outlining in a statement why it declined a city offer to handle foreclosure mediations.?Combined with the uncertainty regarding the number of mediations that might take place under the program, the AAA was not in a position to offer its services under the ordinance as written,” the New York City-based Association stated.City attorneys said other mediation agencies are interested in overseeing mediations.?Hopefully, we?ll start next week,” city Solicitor Michael Barry said.Approved by the City Council on May 14, the city law requires residential loan holders to meet with a homeowner after sending the owner a “notice to cure” prior to foreclosure. A mediation firm picked by the city and paid for with money from fees paid by loan holders will assign mediators to run the meetings.Loans that proceed to foreclosure after mediation will not be recorded by the Southern Essex Registry of Deeds unless they are accompanied by a certificate of mediation indicating an attempt at loan modification took place.The Association?s reputation as a major arbitration service provider prompted city attorneys to reach out to it after the ordinance?s passage.City Solicitor Michael Barry said several concerns prompted the Association to back out of handling mediations, including the possibility that costs and challenges associated with mediations could outweigh the number of hearings it was paid to oversee.?They didn?t think it would be enough volume for them,” Barry said.Since the ordinance became law in June, Assistant City Solicitor James Lamanna said about 10 foreclosure notices have been sent to the solicitor?s office as required by the ordinance.Lamanna said “three or four” agencies and organizations have indicated they are interested in overseeing mediations under the ordinance in the wake of the Association?s decision to back out of mediation.One is affiliated with the University of Massachusetts and another has ties to Harvard University, Lamanna said.?We anticipate actual mediations taking place at the (Salem) Registry of Deeds,” he said.Mediation advocate and Ward 6 Councilor Peter Capano is confident at least one of the agencies has mediators trained in foreclosure resolution who can do a good job for the city. He does not think the effort to pick another mediator will seriously delay scheduling mediation meetings for the homeowners named in the notices sent to the city.Anti-foreclosure advocates Isaac Hodes and Ella Thomas are anxious to get mediation conferences scheduled but stressed the need to have a well-run mediation program in place. They said mediators serving the city must be trained in foreclosure resolution and know, in Hodes? words, “what has worked and has not worked in other states.”?You have to have expertise and know how it?s worked in other places,” Thomas said.Her Fearless Avenue home was foreclosed on in 2012, but she said legal challenges have allowed her to remain in it.