On Saturday, August 11, Occupy Bernal, ACCE, and a bunch of Foreclosure and Eviction Fighters and supporters celebrated Ross Rhodes victory in getting a fair deal loan modification from Wells Fargo after years of struggle. After the party, most of the attendees headed over to protest at three bank branches in San Francisco’s Noe Valley neighborhood.
Thanks to Peter Menchini for the first thirteen photos below.
Update as of July 7: Due to intense pressure from Occupy Bernal, Occupy Noe, and ACCE (thanks for all the calls and emails!), Wells Fargo has postponed the auction of Bernal Foreclosure and Eviction Fighter (FEF) Thomas German until August 14.
At an FEF planning meeting this morning, the group decided that — in light of Wells Fargo’s decision to postpone Thomas’ auction and to start a conversation with us about negotiations — we will postpone the actions we had planned in response to the foreclosure auction:
Stay tuned for further news about any progress toward negotiations with Wells Fargo. We are hopeful that there will be a positive outcome for all concerned.
Update as of July 6: Good news… Wells Fargo has postponed Thomas German’s auction until August 14.
Wells Fargo plans to auction off our Bernal neighbor, Occupy Bernal co-founder, and Foreclosure and Eviction Fighter Thomas German’s home this coming Tuesday, July 10. We have to stop them!
Please take action with three steps to save his home:
1) Send this email right now to Wells Fargo’s CEO, Board Members, and other staff–
To: john.g.stumpf@wellsfargo.com, ruben.pulido@wellsfargo.com, Pat.Callahan@wellsfargo.com, Avid.Modjtabai@wellsfargo.com, James.Strother@wellsfargo.com, boardcommunications@wellsfargo.com, jason.ohara@wellsfargo.com, richard.m.sintchak@wellsfargo.com, eric.tang@wellsfargo.com
Cc: action@occupybernal.org
Subject: Postpone Auction of Tommie German’s Home at 348 Andover St., San Francisco (loan #0044751501)
Dear Wells Fargo staff,
Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Tommie German’s home at 348 Andover St., San Francisco (loan #0048358501).
Tommie German is a retired federal worker and a veteran who is ready to make regular payments on a renegotiated loan, which Wells Fargo has refused to provide. He is facing a life-threatening hernia operation at the end of July and stress over losing his home is worsening his condition.
Once Wells Fargo has postponed the auction of Tommie German’s home, please offer him a fair deal for a loan modification on terms that are sustainable.
This is an URGENT request, so please respond right away to postpone the auction.
Sincerely,
your name here
2) Call these Wells Fargo representatives with the message below.
Contact:
Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf at 866-878-5865
James Strother at 415-396-1793
Patricia Callahan at 800-869-3557
Avid Modjtabai at 800-869-3557
Wells Fargo Communications Staff Ruben Pulido at 415-852-1279
Tell them (or leave a message):
“Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Tommie German’s home at 348 Andover St., San Francisco (loan #0044751501), scheduled for July 10. Tommie German is a retired federal worker and a veteran who is ready to make regular payments on a renegotiated loan, which Wells Fargo has refused to provide. He is facing a life-threatening hernia operation at the end of July and stress over losing his home is worsening his condition. Once Wells Fargo has postponed the auction of Tommie German’s home, please offer him a fair deal for a loan modification on terms that are sustainable. This is an URGENT request, so please respond right away to postpone the auction..”
3) Join us to protest:
Links: Action Flyer Profile of Thomas German Video Featuring Thomas German
Stop Banks From Evicting the 99%!
Wells Fargo plans to auction Tommie German’s home on July 10 despite:
This action alert brought to you by Occupy Bernal (www.occupybernal.org), ACCE (www.calorganize.org), and other supportive organizations coordinated within the Occupy the Auctions and Evictions campaign (www.occupytheauctions.org).
Update: Wells Fargo finally got the trustee to postpone the auction of Archbishop King’s home to July 20, 2012.
Please show up to defend the Bayview home of Archbishop Franzo King and family at 1:30pm to prepare for the auction which starts promptly at 2:00pm at City Hall sidewalk, 400 Van Ness Ave., in San Francisco.
Although a Wells Fargo representative apparently told Archbishop Franzo King the bank was postponing the auction of his home, the trustee in charge of the auction still lists the bank auction for Thursday, June 21. A recent court ruling seemed to hold that verbal agreements from bank representatives aren’t worth anything, so that means we have to defend the home of Archbishop Franzo King and his family.
Archbishop King pastors the John Coltrane Church, located in the Western Addition community of San Francisco. He is a community leader and a member of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE).
Links: Profile of Archbishop King San Francisco Bayview article (by Carol Harvey)
Update: Wells Fargo managed to sell of the home of the Davilas, but they postponed the auction of Sheila Walsh’s home until July 23, 2012.
This coming week, Wells Fargo Bank is again attacking the San Francisco Foreclosure and Evictions Fighters we know and love and trying to auction off their homes. For the first time, we’ve exhausted the legal remedies for postponing the bank sales.
IMPORTANT: We ask you to choose one or both days to Occupy the Auctions to save our neighbors’ homes.
| Wednesday, June 20 | Maria and Washington Davila (more info below) |
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Sheila Walsh is 87 years old and has lived in her current home for 28 years. She has a mortgage with Wells Fargo and it seems like she has been a victim of financial fraud: she took out a home equity line of credit and through an apparently fraudulent transaction was charged $217,000 to her home equity loan. Her mortgage payment ballooned after the fraudulent charge and is now much more than she can afford. Wells Fargo plans to auction off her home on Thursday, June 21. She needs time and help to investigate the fraudulent charge, so she can resolve the matter with Wells Fargo and remain in her home. |
We gather at 1:30pm at City Hall, 400 Van Ness Ave., to prepare for the auctions that start promptly at 2:00pm. Please bring a whistle or other noisemaker and earplugs if you have them (we have some to share).
Note: In the event a bank succeeds in selling one of our Foreclosure and Eviction Fighters homes, we will take additional action just following the Occupy the Auctions action. In the event of postponements or cancellations, we plan to go ahead and protest the other auctions taking place that day and also have follow-on actions planned.
Action Alert for Maria and Washington Davila
Wells Fargo plans to auction off the home of Bernal neighbor Felisa Yambao THIS WEDNESDAY (JUNE 20). Their tenants of seven years, Maria and Washington Davila, have been members of Occupy Bernal and have been fighting to save the home since they learned of the foreclosure several months ago. The homeowner, Felisa Yambao, is ill and lives in Las Vegas, but now has joined Occupy Bernal in fighting the foreclosure. Occupy Bernal and allies have mobilized to postpone the auction of the home several times, and now we need your help again.
Please take action with three steps to save their home:
1) Send the following email right now to Wells Fargo’s CEO, Board Members, and other staff–
To: john.g.stumpf@wellsfargo.com, alfredo.pedroza@wellsfargo.com, ruben.pulido@wellsfargo.com, boardcommunications@wellsfargo.com, jason.ohara@wellsfargo.com, richard.m.sintchak@wellsfargo.com, eric.tang@wellsfargo.com
Cc: action@occupybernal.org
Subject: Postpone Auction of Felisa Yambao’s Home at 4255 Folsom St., San Francisco (loan #0044522993)
Dear Wells Fargo staff,
Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Felisa Yambao’s home at 4255 Folsom St, San Francisco (loan #0044522993).
Ms. Yambao, who suffers from cancer, has been making efforts to negotiate a fair solution, yet Wells has scheduled her home for auction at 2:00pm, June 20, 2012, against the wishes of Yambao’s long-time tenants, Maria and Washington Davila.
Once Wells Fargo has postponed the auction of Felisa Yambao’s home, offer her a fair deal for a loan modification on terms that are sustainable, and which will allow her to continue to provide affordable housing for the Davilas.
This is an URGENT request, so please respond right away to postpone the auction.
Sincerely,
your name here
2) Starting at 8:00am on June 18, call the following Wells Fargo representatives with the message below.
Contact:
Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf at 866-878-5865
Wells Fargo Director of California Local Government Relations Alfredo Pedroza at 415-396-0829
Wells Fargo Communications Staff Ruben Pulido at 415-852-1279
Wells Fargo Branch Manager Eric Tang at 415-977-9357
Wells Fargo Branch Manager Jason O’Hara at 415-554-8820
Tell them (or leave a message):
“Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Felisa Yambao’s home at 4255 Folsom St, San Francisco (loan #0044522993). Ms. Yambao, who suffers from cancer, has been making efforts to negotiate a fair solution, yet Wells has scheduled her home for auction at 2:00pm, June 20, 2012, against the wishes of Yambao’s long-time tenants, Maria and Washington Davila. Once Wells Fargo has postponed the auction of Felisa Yambao’s home, offer her a fair deal for a loan modification on terms that are sustainable, and which will allow her to continue to provide affordable housing for the Davilas. This is an URGENT request, so please respond right away to postpone the auction.”
3) Show up at 1:45pm (auction starts promptly at 2:00pm and the auctioneers can sell off a house in less than a minute) on the sidewalk in front of City Hall, 400 Van Ness Ave, in San Francisco, to protest Wells Fargo auctioning off Felisa Yambao’s, and Washington and Maria Davila’s home.
Bring a loud voice, a whistle, earplugs, and signs to let Wells Fargo know we won’t stand for it anymore… stop illegally selling off our neighbors homes!
Background:
Washington and Maria Davila have been living in a house they have been renting in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights neighborhood for the past seven years. But now, because their landlord Felisa Yambao, who lives in Las Vegas and is suffering from cancer, is in foreclosure, Wells Fargo is planning to sell the house at an auction this Friday. According to the Ellis Act, a new owner-occupant of the house eventually could evict the Davilas, and the Davilas would like to continue renting from Ms. Yambao.
Last January 20, Wells Fargo canceled an auction date after Occupy Bernal planned a protest. Last month, we mobilized again to save the home with a call-in day and protest on behalf of the Davila’s and the Yambao’s. But the bank hasn’t learned its lesson. On Wednesday, Occupy Bernal is determined to disrupt the housing auction to stop the foreclosure and eviction of our neighbors. We also will be leafleting potential home buyers, calling on them not to buy the Davila’s home.
Now Wells Fargo plans to auction Ms. Yambao and the Davilas’ home on June 20 despite:
These actions brought to you by Occupy Bernal, ACCE, and other supportive organizations coordinated within the Occupy the Auctions and Evictions campaign.
Link: Upcoming Bank Auctions of Foreclosure/Eviction Fighter Homes Foreclosure/Eviction Fighter Profilesion Fighter Profiles
Update: A large number of folks turned out to stop the auction of the home of Bernal neighbor Alberto del Rio and his family. Fortunately, his family managed to file bankruptcy in time to postpone the auction of his home until July 6, 2012. For more details, see the video below and a further description and photos here
Link: PDF (for printing)
STOP THE AUCTION of ALBERTO DEL RIO’S HOME!
ON FRIDAY, June 1, 1:45pm at CITY HALL (Van Ness side)
Together we can stop predatory banks and help our neighbors!
In the past few months we’ve stalled/stopped dozens of home auctions.
Alberto Del Rio is a Bernal Heights resident who grew up in his family home. He lives there with his wife and 3 kids. To help his mother have a decent retirement, the Del Rio family took equity out of the home and refinanced. But their loan from World Savings was a Pick-a-Payment loan. Lawsuits have found these sorts of loans to be predatory. World Savings sold the loan to Wachovia, which was then acquired by Wells Fargo. “Wells took advantage of me. Like they did so many other people. They promised us the moon,” says Alberto, who has been trying to get a loan modification since 2000. The bank has continually lost his paperwork, and refused to negotiate in good faith. The bank even advised him to stop making payments in order to qualify for a loan modification, which triggered the foreclosure process. Now, Wells Fargo is scheduled to auction his home on June 1. But we won’t let them.
YOU CAN ALSO HELP BY CALLING WELLS FARGO’s CEO and STAFF right away in protest: Just say: “Postpone the auction of Alberto Del Rio’s home at 565 Banks St., San Francisco. Loan # 47339080.” Then tell them the above story. CallCEO John Stumpf (866-878-5865), director Alfredo Pedroza (415-396-0829), communications Ruben Pulido (415-852-1279), bank managers Eric Tang (415-977-9357) and Jason O’Hara (415-554-8820).
For more info www.occupybernal.org or call 415-483-9138.
Occupy Bernal and ACCE Foreclosure and Eviction Fighters and supporters joined forces at a meeting on May 31, 2012, to plan strategies and tactics for stopping predatory foreclosures and related auctions and evictions.
Please protest the auction of the home of Bernal resident Allen Stowers for today, May 23, 2012. Allen is out of town on business, but has asked us to protest the sale of his home.
Please come at 1:45pm to the sidewalk in front of City Hall at 400 Van Ness Ave. Bring a whistle and earplugs (we have some to share).
Check out this video of the amazing Brass Liberation Orchestra protesting bank sales of our neighbors’ homes at the Occupy the Auctions action today.
For more news, photos, and videos of the action:
http://occupytheauctions.org/wordpress/?p=1730
Tell Wells Fargo: Stop the Auction of Ernesto Viscarra’s Home!
Please take action with three steps to save Ernesto’s home:
1) Send the following email right now to Wells Fargo’s CEO, Board Members, and other staff–
To: john.g.stumpf@wellsfargo.com, alfredo.pedroza@wellsfargo.com
Subject: Postpone Auction of Ernesto Viscarra’s Home at 249 Anderson St., San Francisco (Loan # 46110532)
Dear Wells Fargo staff,
Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Ernesto Viscarra’s home at 249 Anderson St., San Francisco (Loan # 46110532).
Mr. Viscarra has lived in his home for 33 years. After four years of being ignored, he finally was able to negotiate with your institution, and was granted a trial loan modification. He has been making his payments on time, but he still has an auction date of Monday, May 21 on his home.
I am aware of situations in which Wells Fargo staff have engaged in dual tracking, where homeowners are simultaneously on track for a loan modification and for foreclosure, and have lost their home as a result.
Please make assurances that you will make good on the terms of Mr. Viscarra’s loan modification and take immediate action to cancel the auction of his home.
Sincerely,
your name here
2) Starting at 8:00am on May 16, call the following Wells Fargo representatives with the message below.
Contact:
Tell them (or leave a message):
“Please take IMMEDIATE action to postpone the auction of Ernesto Viscarra’s home at 249 Anderson St., San Francisco (lLoan # 46110532). Mr. Viscarra has lived in his home for 33 years. After four years of being ignored, he finally was able to negotiate with your institution, and was granted a trial loan modification. He has been making his payments on time, but he still has a May 21 auction date on his home. I am aware of situations in which Wells Fargo staff have engaged in dual tracking, where homeowners are simultaneously on track for a loan modification and for foreclosure, and have lost their home as a result. Please make assurances that you will make good on the terms of Mr. Viscarra’s loan modification and take immediate action to cancel the auction of his home.”
3.) If the sale of the home is not cancelled, join us on the steps of City Hall (Van Ness side) on Monday, May 21, at 9:45 a.m. to stop the auction.