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Grants Offered For Veterans Going Into Foreclosure

LANSING (WWJ/AP) - Michigan military service members and veterans struggling to keep their homes because of the mortgage foreclosure crisis could be eligible for financial assistance from the state.

Attorney General Bill Schuette and the Director of the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency Jeff Barnes announced Tuesday that $5 million is now available to assist military service members and veterans who are losing or have already lost their homes to foreclosure since 2006.

Eligible Michigan residents include active and reserve military service members, Air and National Guard, honorably discharged veterans and surviving spouses of Michigan service members who had a combated-related death.

"Our veterans and their families make sacrifices to protect the freedoms we hold dear, and they should never be forced out of their homes illegally," said Schuette, in a statement.  "Veterans have special protections from foreclosure under the law, but in many cases those protections were ignored by lenders, who pursued improper foreclosures.

"This new assistance is an important step toward restoring the lives of Great Lakes State veterans who may have struggled to keep their homes during the foreclosure crisis," Schuette said.

The grants will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis until the money runs out. Grants will be sent directly to the vendors, like the lenders.

Military service members and veterans interested in applying for MiVHAP grants can request applications and obtain more information by calling 517-284-5296 or by visiting www.michigan.gov/veterans.

equests by mail may be sent to: Michigan Veterans Trust Fund, MiVHAP, P.O. Box 30104, Lansing, MI 48909.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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