UPDATE, June 2025: California Mortgage Relief Program that provided grants to homeowners has ended and is no longer accepting applications or offering grants. However, the state is now offering the CalAssist Mortgage Fund, a program to provide relief from mortgage payments for displaced families whose homes were destroyed or left uninhabitable by a California disaster such as the Los Angeles wildfires or floods.
Public Counsel is thrilled to share a recent success story from our Consumer Rights and Economic Justice project’s foreclosure prevention team. Harold and Rita Davis, elderly Los Angeles homeowners, are our first clients to have had their PACE liens successfully paid off by a new initiative through the California Mortgage Relief Program!
Originally intended to support homeowners in financing clean-energy upgrades, Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans have become a financial burden for thousands of low-income households due to their high-interest rates and lack of basic consumer protections. Fortunately, the California Mortgage Relief Program has introduced a new initiative to provide a much-needed lifeline to struggling homeowners. This program will pay down or pay off existing PACE loans for eligible homeowners who have previously sought assistance for their PACE loans.
Public Counsel moved quickly to help PACE victims access this relief. At the end of December 2023, we reached out to approximately 300 past PACE clients to inform them about this new opportunity. In January and February 2024, we held seven clinics and assisted approximately 50 homeowners in applying for PACE relief.
The Davises attended an in-person clinic on January 10 and were able to submit their application that day. By February 7, the Davises were informed that their application was approved and their PACE loans were fully paid off. The total payoff for their three PACE loans was $38,578.80, which the Davises were unable to afford on their own. Upon hearing that their application was successful, Mr. Davis expressed, “We’re grateful for Public Counsel; they kept us informed and kept things moving forward. If it wasn’t for their efforts, we would still be under the thumb of this thing.”
To learn more about the California Mortgage Relief Program, click here.
