Bonnie has lived in Manhattan for her entire life, residing at her current address for the past 20 years.  She ran a business making gift baskets from her home, a space which provided her an extra room to remodel into office space. However, Bonnie decided to shutter operations once her husband fell ill.  

Bonnie also holds the role as secretary of her condominium’s homeowners association (HOA), scheduling and attending meetings where decisions are made before they are sent to management. Although she is dedicated to the role, Bonnie recently faced some medical and financial setbacks that threatened not just her position with the HOA, but her actual home itself. In addition to her husband’s illness, she needed expensive medication for a pulmonary embolism from which she was recovering. The couple’s condo fees also increased. Bonnie was struggling to keep up. In need of assistance, she came across the City Bar Justice Center’s Homeowner Stability Project (HSP).  

HSP provides free, high-quality legal assistance to New York City homeowners of low to moderate economic means who are faced with potential property loss. Bonnie submitted an intake form and received a call from HSP within a few days. Staff attorneys advised Bonnie that she might be eligible for a grant from the Equitable Reverse Mortgage Assistance (ERMA) program to help her catch up on bills. With HSP’s guidance, Bonnie secured a spot on the waiting list. Unfortunately, ERMA’s funding was depleted before she was selected from the list, and for the time being, Bonnie was back where she started.  

In the meantime, HSP assisted Bonnie in other ways. Attorneys were able to help get a loan modification for Bonnie and her husband’s mortgage, preventing the loss of their home to foreclosure.  She is also currently in the process of updating her will with help from the Planning and Estates Law Project (PELP). And despite trying to juggle her medical expenses and condo fees, she was still volunteering on the HOA board. Feeling overwhelmed, Bonnie was able to ease her stress by speaking with one of the Justice Center’s licensed social workers. 

Meanwhile, HSP continued to help Bonnie. She had set up a payment plan to catch up on arrears for her home’s utilities, but the payments were still financially unsustainable. However, she received another call from HSP nine months later after ERMA notified them that they had received additional funds and Bonnie’s name had reached the top of the wait list. Bonnie’s attorneys helped her complete the re-application process, and ERMA approved a grant to pay off the entirety of Bonnie’s utility bill and the overdue condo assessment fees. Bonnie and her husband are now able to move forward with their lives. She even plans to bring back her basket-making business for her friends and family in the same office space that she worked in for nearly two decades once she finishes serving on the HOA board.  

“Everyone who I have come in contact with at the City Bar Justice Center has been extremely helpful,” Bonnie said. “I cannot say enough about how much I appreciate the help that I got. It has been fantastic.”  

 Want to learn more about the Homeowner Stability Project? Visit the project’s webpage!