VOA常速英语:Program to Help US Homeless Helps Neighbors

短语讲解：

1. Due to a bad economy and high unemployment, millions of American families were unable to repay the loans they took out to buy homes.

due to由于，因为
例句：Due to the extreme cold, we were unable to plant the trees.
由于天气很冷, 所以我们无法去植树。
take out获取, 办理
例句：Mary and John took out a marriage license.
玛丽和约翰取得一份结婚证书。

2. Then his health failed, and a series of surgeries kept him sidelined for months.

a series of一系列，一连串
例句：A series of mischance happened.
一连串不幸的事发生了。

3. His teenage daughter answered the door.

answer the door应门,去开门(迎客)
例句：Somebody is knocking, please answer the door.
有人敲门，请开一下门。

4. “So when I came back, I find her on the floor just in tears," said Brad.

in tears 流着泪
例句：The little girl was already in tears.
小女孩已经在哭了。

5. I was heartbroken that she happened to be the one that was home at the time.

happen to碰巧
例句：I happen to be more than usually hard up. 
近来正巧手头更紧了。 

6. Sonya worries about the neighbors they left behind.

leave behind忘带, 留下; 丢弃
例句：He left his wife and children behind.
他抛下了妻子儿女。

7. The Blomgrens are paying a small monthly fee to The Journey Home in place of rent, but it is well below market value.

in place of代替，取代
例句：I used honey in place of sugar.
我以蜂蜜代替糖。

8. "Therefore, when they move out of our property onto the next, they already have that foundation.”

move out 迁出, 搬出
例句：We're moving out of our old house next week.
下星期我们要搬出老房子。

9. Grant recipients can use NSP funds to tear down vacant homes if they wish, but most have chosen to either repair and resell the properties to low-income families, or use them to house the homeless as the Murfreesboro charity chose to do.

tear down拆毁; 拆卸
例句：The old houses have been torn down.
旧房子拆掉了。

10. “Living next door to a foreclosed upon property can have an almost viral effect on the neighborhood, dragging down the values of the surrounding properties,” said Brian Sullivan, a spokesperson for U.S.

have an effect on对…有影响;对…起作用,产生效果
例句：Foreign food and climates can have an effect on your health. 
异国的食品和气候可能会对你的健康产生影响。