Sen. Christopher Dodd and Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch visited the home of a Bridgeport woman Thursday to find out how she avoided losing her home in the subprime mortgage crisis.

Donna Marine Pierce says the interest rates on her subprime mortgage were about to skyrocket in June, and she worried about losing her home. However, Pierce says thanks to the grassroots organization ACORN, she is no longer facing homelessness. According to Pierce, ACORN helped to renegotiate a more appropriate mortgage.

Pierce joined Finch at a roundtable discussion with ACORN and other realtors to discuss how they can prevent the crisis from happening to other homeowners.

Dodd says he hopes the visit and discussion helped to put a human face to the problem of subprime mortgages. He hopes to tackle the issue in a new bill he?s sponsoring called the HOPE for Homeowners Act.

ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) - 1-866-67-ACORN