Home Defense Program HUD Certified Housing Counselor/Paralegal

About the JobAtlanta Legal Aid Society ("Legal Aid") seeks a HUD-Certified Housing Counselor/Paralegal for its Home Defense Program. Our non-profit law firm represents low-income persons in a variety of civil legal matters including family, housing, consumer, public benefits, education and health law. The Home Defense Program assists individuals and families to prevent the loss of their home through foreclosure, predatory mortgage lending, or home sale scams. The Home Defense Program is housed within Legal Aid's Decatur office, this is an in-office position. The unit currently consists of three full-time attorneys, one part-time attorney, one HUD-certified housing counselor/paralegal, and a paralegal.Responsibilities:Case intake and management, including answering the phone, conducting initial client intakes and interviews, gathering documentation, and presenting cases to the staff attorneys and at case acceptance meetingsHousing counseling, financial analysis, budgeting, and action planning for low and moderate-income homeowner and homebuyer clients whose cases are taken for representationAssist attorneys with document preparation and execution, discovery, depositions and hearings, and other paralegal and clerical workProvide clients with information and advice under the strict supervision of an attorneyReview and analyze applications for appropriate loss mitigation and foreclosure prevention options, such as deferrals, forbearances, partial claims, loan modifications, and/or mortgage assistance programsData management, including entering information into Legal Aid's database and retrieving relevant dataFile management, including scanning documents into the client database, digital organization, filing, and archiving closed casesEnsure grant compliance, organize data and documentation required for grants, and assist in the preparation of periodic reportsConduct deed and lien searchesMaintain a community outreach schedule and community education materialsOther tasks as assignedQualifications:Must be a HUD-Certified Housing CounselorAn undergraduate degree or paralegal certificate is preferred, but not requiredPrior housing counselor experience, paralegal or legal assistant experience strongly preferredPrior experience with law office management software strongly preferredDemonstrated commitment to public service and previous work with low-income people, with an appreciation for diversity, is strongly preferredMust be patient, compassionate, and possess excellent problem-solving skillsExcellent interpersonal, written and verbal communication, listening, and organizational skillsMust be industrious, dependable, organized, adaptable, detail-oriented, with the ability to complete tasks within the applicable deadlineProficiency in Google Workspace and a willingness to learn new legal and medical data toolsDemonstrated ability to work independently and in a collaborative, hybrid team modelProficiency in languages other than English, specifically Spanish, is highly valuedSalary and Benefits:This position offers a salary of $55,000, but may vary (up or down) depending on work experience. Salaries are reviewed annually and may be adjusted based on available fundingGenerous fringe benefits, including 16 paid holidays in 2026, 6 weeks of paid time off (accruing at 2.5 days per month), and 6 weeks of parental leave (12 weeks after one year)Individual health insurance, including optional dental and vision coverage, with partial payment for dependent health insuranceLife, long-term, and short-term disability insuranceSalary reduction option for a flexible spending accountEducational loan reimbursement up to $600 per month (after a set off of other loan reimbursement amounts)Voluntary tax-sheltered annuity with a 3% matchThis position may be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness through the U.S. Department of EducationApplication Requirements: Submit a letter of interest, resume, documentation of HUD-certified housing counselor status, writing sample, official school transcript (a copy is acceptable pending your order of an official transcript), and the names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of three professional references (preferably individuals who have supervised or managed your work) with a brief statement as to the connection to the applicant, as one (1) PDF using our online application system at the following link: Atlantalegalaid.org/jobs. Only applications with all requested documents will be considered for an interview.Your application will be acknowledged. No phone calls please. For technical difficulties in submitting your application, please email career@atlantalegalaid.org.