I think the housekeeper is Lendy Holmes' chick. So when she got her mortgage she anticapted raises from Big Red.
accurate, are you not the least bit upset that you are going to be paying to keep that woman in a half-million dollar house? I would probably be OK with some type of federal "gap insurance" to pay the difference in a short sale, but letting her keep it doesn't bother you at all? Do you really think someone "tricked" her into buying a $500,000 house?
I was sponsoring a NAHREP event (National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals) a few years ago. The speaker quoted a survey that said (I don't remember the exact percentage) something like "75% of Spanish-speaking buyers thought that, by law, the mortgage rate offered had to be the lowest rate possible." At that point, a room full of Real Estate professionals both laughed and became sad at the same time. The economic education is horrible.
I don't know the details of this person's home buying. I don't know what she was told to get her into the home by the "real estate professional" and the banker who qualified her, but I bet there is a lot of blame to go around, and it isn't just hers.
So what's the big deal if a bunch of homes are forclosed? The owner gets mauled on their credit rating, and can't buy another house for a while, or get a car loan, or credit card. (They probably shouldn't have one anyway). They have to rent, maybe in a location they don't like, or in a place that is smaller than they think is comfortable. Boo Hoo. The lender sells the house, maybe loses some money if the loan is upside down. BooHoo. If they have to lay off workers, or cut salary or bonuses, or whatever, too bad.
Here's the thing, and maybe I'm wrong on this. But if these are people who aren't destitute, who simply cannot afford their payments as they are now (but apparently could afford them if they refinanced), then why is eviction an issue? They're not being thrown out onto the street, they can be like the rest of us and get an apartment or temporary residence. When my parents sold their house to move into another one, there was a time gap in which they had to *gasp* live in an apartment!!! How horrible for them! I am sympathetic to people who have lost their jobs and now can't afford to make house payments. But I don't buy that that's really what we're talking about here for the most part. But even then, I'm not sure that bailouts are the answer - are we going to subsidize the right to live in a house? How long are we going to do that?