State Senator Eric Kearney wants Ohio to start collecting interest on money used in real estate purchases as a way to head off foreclosures. Right now, earnest money is held by real estate brokers in non-interest bearing accounts until the home buying process is complete. Kearney says Senate Bill 295 would allow the state to collect interest on that money and use it to fund foreclosure prevention programs. Says Kearney, “It may not seem like a lot if you only looked at the transactions on your street or in your neighborhood. But if you look at the entire state of Ohio and all of the residential real estate transactions that occur in our state, those dollars could add up and could make a significant difference.” He says the idea for the bill came from his own experience in real estate and from collaboration with area realtors. Ohio Association of Realtors C-E-O Bob Fletcher says the group doesn’t have an official position on the bill but plans to look into it. However, he says a similar idea was discussed in the past but was dropped, in part, because it wouldn’t have generated much money.

Cincinnati partnership wins federal funding
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Protest planned after no felony charges filed in homeless death
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Reds announce postseason ticket details
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Comair plans to cut planes and jobs
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23rd Smog alert this year
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Service will celebrate life of Erich Kunzel
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