Colorado Lawyer Trust Account Foundation (COLTAF)

Request for Letters of Interest

May 1, 2017

Background

COLTAF, like the Interest on Lawyer Trust Account programs in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several territories, has received fundspursuant to the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2014 settlement with Bank of America (BoA), in connection with claims arising from the bank’s sale of mortgage-backed securities and other conduct related to the most recent financial crisis. The BoAfunds received by COLTAF must be used “for the sole purpose of providing funds to legal aid organizations in the state of Colorado to be used for foreclosure prevention legal assistance and community redevelopment legal assistance.”

COLTAF is requesting Letters of Interestfrom 501(c)(3) legal aid organizations, as defined below, interested in being considered for a grant of BoA funds. The required format and contents of Letters of Interest are set forth below. The Letters of Interest will enable COLTAF to identify those projects that have the most reasonable chance of success in the grant process. COLTAF will then solicit full proposals from those projects. Submission of a Letter of Interest does not guarantee that COLTAF will solicit a full proposal.

This is one-time, non-renewable funding. Proposals may involve either new or existing projects, and may cover one to three years, depending on the substantive work proposed. The exact amount of the grant awards will depend on the number and quality of proposals received. Proposals will be accepted for projects that provide foreclosure prevention legal assistance or community redevelopment legal assistance or both, but COLTAF’s greatest need is in identifying appropriate community redevelopment legal assistance projects.

Eligible Applicants

For purposes of a BoA grant, a“legal aid organization” is a nonprofit organization or a distinct part of a nonprofit organization that regularly makes civil legal assistance available without charge, or at a greatly reduced cost, to low income individuals or to organizations or groups working to address the needs of low income individuals.

Strategies

Strategies may include advice and counseling for community or advocacy groups, transactional work for low income small businesses or nonprofits, individual representation, or policy and systemic advocacy, but should reflect an understanding of the current needs and challenges within the low income communities to be served, and knowledge of successful models for meeting those needs. Regardless of the specific strategies proposed, legal assistance must bethe most significant component of the service being delivered.

Definition of “foreclosure prevention legal assistance”

For purposes of a BoA grant, proposed foreclosure prevention legal assistance projects should prevent foreclosure and eliminate other threats to continued home ownership in the context of the specific circumstances currently faced by the low income communities to be served.

Examples of foreclosure prevention legal assistance may include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Outreach and education on buying or refinancing a home, including affordability, a borrower’s rights and responsibilities, mortgage loans, and home-buying programs;
  • Outreach and education on the foreclosure process and legal options;
  • Review of home loan documents, counseling regarding the viability of loan modification, and review of any possible violations of state or federal law;
  • Loan modification assistance, including forbearance agreements and repayment plans for debt forgiveness or reduction, interest rate reduction, or extension of time for payment, as well as transitional options, including short sales, deeds in lieu of foreclosure, and cash for keys;
  • Loan modification denial appeals;
  • Negotiation, mediation and litigation to address mortgage servicing issues;
  • Advice and representation in connection with threatened or noticed foreclosure proceedings, including Rule 120 and judicial foreclosure actions;
  • Advice and representation in connection with threatened or pending HOA liens or foreclosures;
  • Advice and representation in connection with threatened or pending mobile home repossessions or evictions;
  • Bankruptcies to preserve homeownership, including preventing foreclosures and repossessions and any other actions which threaten a homeowners’ primary residence;
  • Advice regarding reverse mortgages;
  • Advice regarding application for Colorado’s Senior Homestead Exemption;
  • Action to restore title when appropriate, such as in cases of consumer fraud, predatory lending, financial exploitation, or the like;
  • Advice and representation with respect to other debt, such as medical or consumer debt, which has been determined to be a risk to homeownership;
  • Any advice to or representation of a homeowner or a member of a homeowner’s household that could materially impact the homeowner's ability to retain the home; and
  • Policy advocacy and support services to increase capacity and foster collaboration with local, state, and national groups on any of the issues above.

Definition of “community redevelopment legal assistance”

For purposes of a BoA grant, proposed community redevelopment legal assistance projectsshould support and promote economic development and economic self-sufficiency by providing legal services that revitalize, stabilize, or otherwise improve the quality of life in low income communities.

Examples of community redevelopment legal assistance may include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Individual representation to improve economic self-sufficiency by improving housing security (including eviction defense), eliminating barriers to employment (including expunction of criminal records), securing access to necessary public benefits, defending or repairing credit, ameliorating debt, etc.
  • Representation of nonprofit organizations or community groups working within low income communities to develop or preserve affordable housing;to increase access to necessary services (transportation, childcare, senior centers, job training centers, healthcare facilities, grocery stores and access to fresh, healthy food, etc);to encourage business development and/or create jobs;to prevent or remedy environmental degradation; to remediate blight; or otherwise to improve the quality of lifein those communities.
  • Representation of low income small business owners or entrepreneurs in transactional matters that will contribute to the business’s success and thecommunity’s stability.

Letter of Interest Requirements

All prospective grant applicants must submit a Letter of Interest no later than Thursday, June 15, 2017. Letters of Interest should be sent via email to . The letters should be no more than three pages long, submitted in Word format, single-spaced, 1-inch margins, and written in 12-point font. Submission of a Letter of Interest does not guarantee that COLTAF will solicit a full proposal; solicitation of a full proposal does not guarantee funding.

The Letter of Interest should include the following:

  1. The name and description of the organization submitting the Letter of Interest.
  1. Whether the proposed project involves foreclosure prevention legal assistance or community redevelopment legal assistance or both.
  1. A description of the proposed project, including (a) the specific needs to be addressed, (b) the population to be served, and (c) how legal assistance will be provided.
  1. A description of the major benefits of the project, including expected outcomes for low income individuals and/or low income communities.
  1. An estimate of the amount of funding that would be requested for the project, including a summary breakdown of expected personnel and non-personnel costs, and a general timeline as to the period over which grant funds would be expended.