On Friday, Angelia Williams was evicted from her home on Penrose Street, despite the 30 protesters standing in the way to keep the St. Louis City Sheriff deputies from throwing her out.
Williams’ supporters chanted, “Banks got bailed out, we got sold out” and held signs with phrases including, “Arrest banks, not people.”
The group of “home defenders” said they held off the eviction previously through protests on September 21 and Oct 16.
For more than a year, Williams had been trying to work with Wells Fargo to obtain a loan modification while she was still employed, she said.
“They were not listening then, and they’re not listening now,” she said. “Everyone knows that this is wrong and fraudulent, but they’re still letting it go on. Too many people had to lose their homes because of this. They are throwing me out like I’m a renter – like I haven’t been paid outrageous rates and payments all these years.”
Williams was two years behind in her mortgage payments to Wells Fargo bank because she lost her job.
According to a Fox News report, Wells Fargo released a statement saying, “Wells Fargo worked with Ms. Williams for more than a year to attempt to find an option that would allow her to stay in the home. Despite providing some additional time, we did have to move forward with the eviction.”
Williams said she could not get through to the bank on the numerous times she tried to contact them.
The activists, led by Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment (MORE), said Williams’ situation could have been prevented by automatic foreclosure mediation, which would require the bank to sit down with the homeowner and an independent mediator before foreclosing.
The home defenders are asking for moratoriums on foreclosures in both the City and County until automatic mediation has gone into effect.
“The banks wrecked our economy,” said Molly Gott, spokeswoman for MORE. “We don’t think it’s fair that Wells Fargo, who is under suit for mortgage fraud by the New York attorney general, is able to continue kicking people out of their homes. Angelia is trying to pay for her house.”
The St. Louis County Council approved a law in August that requires banks to participate in formal mediation before foreclosing on county residents’ properties. Yet it’s currently held up in court after a commercial bank filed a class-action lawsuit against the county government on Sept. 18.
After the group’s first protest, St. Louis Mayor Francis G. Slay said he would hold a press conference at Williams’ home in support of foreclosure mediation legislation, Gott said. However, Slay recently cancelled the event.
Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed did not return Williams’ phone calls, Gott said.
“Lewis Reed has expressed interest in foreclosure mediation, but has done nothing to move it forward,” Gott said.
Tom Shepard, Reed’s chief of staff, said Reed sponsored and filed Board Bill 160 (Foreclosure Mediation Bill) in September in order to ensure that a mediation process occurs in a potential foreclosure.
“In an attempt at uniformity across the region, we have attempted to wait until similar legislation in St. Louis County reaches a final version after its court case,” Shepard said. “We believe banks should consider the pending legislation and stall any foreclosure proceedings until the court has reached a decision on the legislation.”
Gott said state Sen. Jamilah Nasheed drove by while the eviction was occurring, but did not get out of her car. However, Nasheed said she was involved in trying to save Williams’ home before MORE got involved.
“I talked to Wells Fargo, and I asked them if they could try to refinance,” Nasheed said. “They said they were going to hold off and send more information.”
Nasheed said she filed a foreclosure bill in the state Legislature this year (HB 1611) that would allow homeowners to participate in dispute resolution or convert to “judicial foreclosure.”
“I’ve been on the front line and how it is impacting my constituents,” Nasheed said. “I will continue to fight that fight. Hopefully, MORE will come to Jeff City to help me fight.”
Although Williams was evicted, she believes the house is still hers. Because the mortgage was an FHA loan, Wells Fargo said the house is now owned by the Federal Housing Administration and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fox reports.
For now, the house is empty, Williams’ belongings are in a neighbor’s garage, and padlocks have been put on the front door.
