State-Supported "Clean Energy" Loans Are Putting Borrowers At Risk of Losing Their Homes
Diana Thomas needed a new furnace and four small basement windows for her two-story home on the east side of Kansas City. But she had little cash and bad credit.
In late 2016, a contractor told her about a loan program that required no money down and would let her pay off the balance over time as part of her annual property tax bill. Her first payment wouldn’t be due until the end of the following year.
Thomas, 53, knew she was in trouble when she got her 2017 tax bill. With the loan payment, her taxes had soared from $247 to $1,465. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, what have I done?’” she said.
To pay off her loan of $10,792, including fees, Thomas agreed to 15 years of payments at an annual percentage rate of 10%, for a total of $18,200. That’s more than the value of her home — $16,226, according to the county’s appraisal — when she took the loan.
Read more: https://www.propublica.org/article/missouri-pace-loans