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The calendar has yet to reach 100 days (April 30) for the new presidential administration, but the lives of people around the country have been impacted, taking away thousands of days of hard work, setting money aside for savings, and making a house a home–whether as a renter or homeowner. 

According to local realtors, DMV residents are considering selling their home while others are backing out of purchasing a home due to being laid off, fired or the potential of losing their job as President Donald Trump continues to downsize federal government agencies. 

Federal furloughs and actions are not just having an effect on employees, but is causing a domino effect on media companies, foundations and nonprofits.

“Lost jobs and wages in federal government will also have multiplier effects on the private sector via contractors and local businesses that depend on spending by federal employees,” . “Lower overall spending in the D.C. metro will particularly affect consumer-facing sectors such as retail and leisure and hospitality.”

Other DMV residents may have already been facing foreclosure due to rising home loan interest rates. In fact, according to , there were 167 foreclosures in Washington, D.C., in March 2024, up about 17% from the previous month. 

“With a total of 350,372 housing units, the foreclosure rate of the nation’s capital was one in every 2,098 households, putting it above the state of Illinois (#1),” SoFi reported in January. 

Maryland was ranked in seventh place for the highest foreclosure a year ago. It found that 815 of 2,531,075 housing units went into foreclosure, which is one in every 3,106 households. 

Prince George’s County came in as one of the counties with the most foreclosures per housing unit. 

Virginia ranked 35 on the list for highest foreclosure rate last year. Northern Virginia did not show up high on the list.

When being foreclosed on seems inevitable, there are government agencies, policies and resources in place to make an uncomfortable and devastating loss tenable–even if temporarily.

Resources for Prince George’s Residents 

While the Prince George’s County the Sheriffs’ Department enforces foreclosure evictions by recovering properties and coordinates the sale of properties that have outstanding tax liens– also known as Sheriff Sales–  it also offers resources to residents who are losing their home or apartment.  

The sheriff’s department provides a directory on its on protections, next steps and a directory for alternate living spaces.

“We are advocates and the impartial party in reference to the [foreclosure] court process,” said Prince George’s County Sheriff John D.B. Carr. “The reason why I say I’m an advocate is because, even though you’re talking about recovering property–serving a civil process– I want to make sure our citizens know ahead of time how that process goes, so that they can either save their home, they can have the resources that they need to get through this tough time.” 

The support doesn’t just end online.

“We even actually advocated for certain resources, to be inside of the courthouse,” Carr said, “so that when they go to the hearing, they have legal representation and they understand the process and next steps.”

He explained that while the sheriff’s department works to help people even in their hardest times.

“Just because we execute those orders doesn’t mean I can’t show empathy, respect and make sure that we try to take care of you before we have to even come out,” Carr told The �����鶹Ӱ����Ƶ during a homeownership fair in Capitol Heights, Maryland. “And even after we come out, we still want to provide wraparound services. We want to make sure that you’re able to still get on your feet.”

The District’s Mediation Foreclosure Program

In the District, the U.S. Marshall enforces home foreclosures. Before it comes to that, however, banks may choose to go through a judicial foreclosure process through District Superior Court or nonjudicial process. 

With both the homeowner and bank’s interests in mind, the District created the in 2008 as part of the housing bubble burst, officials said. The homeowner, bank, and a neutral third party mediator discuss whether or not the owner qualifies for a foreclosure avoidance.

“These mediations allow residents the opportunity to renegotiate their mortgage with the lender as well as apply for new mortgages and governmental mortgage assistance programs,” said Doug Buchanan, director of media and public relations for D.C. Courts. “The mediation and facilitation of these cases allows for settlement self-determination wherein the parties can negotiate and determine the best possible settlement that is in their interest rather than a judge determining the settlement of the case.”

Once a homeowner receives a notice of default, they can apply to theMediation Foreclosure program by returning the mediation election form no later than 30 days after the bank mails the notice of default. An additional benefit of the mediation process is the foreclosure must stop until the application process and pending mediation is complete. 

There are still instances when a mediation request is not accepted by the bank or when a mediation does not result in a win-win agreement. In those cases, however, the Mediation Foreclosure program can still be a helpful tool in departing one’s home with less force.

“When parties are not able to come to a settlement through mediation, Multi-Door provides a foreclosure facilitation session allowing parties to work with a neutral to determine how the resident will conclude their ownership of the home without eviction,” Buchanan explained. “Options for conclusion can include a short-sale, keys for cash (resident walks away from ownership with a negotiated pay out in return for turning ownership and keys over to the lender), or to simply walk away from ownership.”

To learn more about foreclosure, . To learn more about the District’s foreclosure laws, .