Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a $7.6 million community restoration fund Thursday intended to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

The money is being used to snap up the mortgages of nearly 400 houses statewide, including a vacant home on West Lincoln Avenue in Mount Vernon.

Elizabeth Kelly, of Mount Vernon, has lived next to a so-called zombie home for a couple of years, saying it fell into disrepair after a fire.

News 12 is told that the mayor's office has been aggressively tackling the neighborhood eyesores, but dozens more still remain standing in the city.

Funding for the program came from settlement funds paid to the state by Morgan Stanley for its role in the national mortgage crisis.