Group helps welcome potential home buyers into the area with a bus tour

Some neighborhoods in Milwaukee face a foreclosure crisis, and one group hopes to make those homes a little more attractive to potential buyers.

They are called "Layton Blvd. West Neighbors." What they do is match potential homebuyers up with resources that can help them purchase a home at an affordable price. Also, they provide grant information to help them purchase and renovate the home.

Will Sebern, who's part of the group, says it's all about helping people out. "We're trying to get people interested in making investments in the neighborhood, and helping them as much as we can with that process," he says.

Organizers wanted to hold a bus tour, because they felt getting people out to see the foreclosed homes in person would spark interest. It did just that for Courtney Kreuser and her boyfriend, Michael Stark, who are looking to buy a home.

Kreuser says, "These homes we've seen so far today, not what we would think of foreclosed homes. They are a lot nice than we thought.  We just kind of wanted to learn more about the home owning process."

The American Recovery and Investment Act provided the city of Milwaukee with $25 million in federal funding, to address foreclosed properties in the city.