It what appears to be a strange twist of fate, Carl R. Greene, executive director of the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) is facing foreclosure on his $615,035 home in an upscale development of the city. Ironically, Greene has won accolades from HUD for quickly putting to use economic-recovery money by buying and renovating 1,200 housing units in the past two years. But Greene’s foreclosure could be an embarrassment for the agency. Greene has refused to share exactly why or how he ended up facing foreclosure and has said that he would prefer that his “dispute” with his mortgage servicer remain private. For its part, Wells Fargo Bank which is foreclosing on the condo and is suing Greene for $386,685.22. At this point it is not clear if Greene was delinquent on payments, which is possible even with a salary of $306,370.
We can only imagine the amount of embarrassment that Greene is feeling regarding his foreclosure as the executive director of a program managing millions of dollars and responsible for the housing of the city’s most vulnerable population. But really there should be no embarrassment and certainly no secrecy surrounding the issue of his foreclosure. If in fact Greene is overextended financially, this could be an opportunity for him to show his own “vulnerability” to this foreclosure crisis. And if the foreclosure is simply a matter of a dispute with the mortgage company, then this should also be shared especially as the executive director of the city’s housing authority. It is time for those who are facing foreclosure and other financial difficulties to lift the shroud of secrecy and shame that surround their predicament.