Bronx Church of the Nazarene Partners on Home Management Program to Help Homeowners Protect Properties

A community partnership is helping homeowners protect and maintain their properties. The Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services offers several programs, and it works with community stakeholders such as Bronx Bethany Church of the Nazarene. Its home management program gives homeowners the resources and information they need.

Rev. Dr. Richard Griffiths, senior pastor at Bronx Bethany Church of the Nazarene, said that a number of people in his congregation are dealing with deed theft. Some are in the court system, and the church is helping them find their way through dealings with lawyers for people who claim to own their homes, even though those residents have lived in the community for years. Helping neighbors who are being pressed out of their homes reflects the call to speak up for the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9).

Griffiths said the church is seeing a growing number of homeowners who need to know where to turn and whom to trust.

He described the effects on families beyond the legal questions. “It impacts [the homeowner’s] mental health,” said Griffiths. “It impacts their generational wealth. It impacts their family dynamics. It impacts so much, and we want to make sure that our people are safe and cared for.”

Griffiths said it is crucial to raise awareness through community conversations, workshops and seminars.

“I think if we turn a blind eye, if we don’t engage right now, what we’ll see in the next five to 10 years will be beyond what people can imagine,” said Griffiths.

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