Community Redevelopment and Foreclosure Prevention Legal Assistance Grants Available

TOPEKA, Kan. — Kanas legal aid organizations who assist low-income individual clients with foreclosure prevention and community redevelopment are encouraged to apply for grant assistance through the Kansas Bar Foundation (KBF) Community Redevelopment and Homeowners Assistance (CRHA) Program.

“Through the CHRA fund, the KBF has now been able to fund over $1,000,000 in grants to legal aid organizations in Kansas for community redevelopment and foreclosure prevention legal assistance. We continue to look to applicants to develop creative projects that will have far-ranging and lasting impact on communities,” said Scott M. Hill, KBF Immediate Past President. Information about the grant process and eligibility requirements can be found at www.ksbar.org/mpage/crha_grant. Applications are due September 3, 2021.

Kansas Legal Services (KLS) received a CRHA grant in 2020 to provide legal assistance to its clients. In one case, KLS was able assist a military veteran who developed a medical condition and was unable to make his mortgage payments. After meeting with a KLS attorney, he learned he had special rights as a retired veteran with a VA loan and he was able to seek a loan modification and foreclosure proceedings were dismissed. 

KLS has also held expungement clinics to assist individuals in sealing their criminal records. “Thanks to Kansas Bar Foundation funding, 2021 will have a record number of expungement events across the state. During a time when unemployment has reached recession levels, any barrier to employment can be detrimental to Kansans and their families. This will help countless individuals obtain better job opportunities, better housing, and open doors that were previously not available to them,” said Christine Campbell, Statewide Pro Bono Director at KLS.

For over 60 years, the KBF has funded opportunities for the citizens of Kansas for charitable and educational projects that foster the welfare, honor and integrity of the legal system by improving its accessibility, equality and uniformity, and by enhancing the public opinion of the role of lawyers in our society. For more information about the KBF, visit www.ksbar.org/kbf.