I share your disgust. This sorry situation should not have been allowed to happen.

 It's all part of the recovery cycle guys.

It's a good thing when people start buying again.

 And your point? Who were the ones offering all the preditory loans, who were the ones using "reverse redlining" who today offers the types of loans that got these people in trouble, no one! How hard is it today to buy a property even with the dropping prices,Very hard. If someone has saved(remember that term?) and can make the 20% downpayment as the people losing thier properties should have, they should be able to buy a property guilt free. The property values have not adjusted to the real value they would of been at today without the "Bubble". I know it is sad but if those people had saved and bought a home instead of buying a piggybank they would be alright. It`s a bad situation and finance companies, uneducated home buyers, and cheerleader realtors (who have taken the money and ran) are all to blame. How can you say people are losing thier houses, they are only having to move out of a home the bank owned and they can not pay the rent now, To own a home you must have equity in it, not a new Ford pickup sitting outside.

 Sorry part is that the wise investor in properties who has done a little homework is not going to touch any of those properties for another 2 years when the bottom comes, no one will buy anything that will lose a additional 20-30% in the next couple of years. This is only the begining

 Worst case senario, They Freeze the ARM`s to stop foreclosures. That really is the worst thing for our country.  A kid graduating from college will not be able to afford a house for a very long time if these ARMs are frozen.  Furthermore, they'll have to pay for these other people's mistakes for decades to come.   FURTHERMORE these people getting the ARMs frozen are still stuck in their houses since they cannot sell them.  FURTHERMORE you are keeping the bubble artificially inflated for no other reason than to reward people for making bad decisions!!

are you done ? ? ?  yes you are right ! I guess what I am thinking is that this is the same picture aka David Crisp "fake it before you make it " picture would you have ranted on the same way ....do you remember how the californian made David a "real estate mogue"  a up and coming superstar

same difference

 Has anyone cut his balls off yet?

NOPE, BUT THEY MIGHT DO A PAY PER VIEW

 .  FURTHERMORE you are keeping the bubble artificially inflated for no other reason than to reward people for making bad decisions!! ~MP

That's what McCain is saying.

Obama and Clinton want to just bail them out of their bad decisions

 McCain who? This McCain?

Bush Says Administration Will Expand Mortgage-Relief

March 29 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said the government will expand efforts to help homeowners avoid foreclosure as Democrats increase pressure on his administration to reduce unaffordable home-loan payments.

The White House is ``committed to building on'' its program to help borrowers refinance mortgages, Bush said in his weekly radio address today. Officials are weighing measures to ``provide some additional help to some homeowners,'' White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

Support is growing among policy makers, including Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, to urge lenders to write down the principal on loans to keep homeowners from abandoning their properties. Bush has so far resisted using government funds or guarantees to stem the surge in mortgage foreclosures.

A plan being considered seeks to tackle underwater loans, or mortgages that are larger than the value of a home, the Washington Post reported today, citing unidentified officials. The Federal Housing Administration would encourage banks to forgive part of the debt and refinance smaller mortgages with backing from the government, the Post said.

``The problems in the housing market are complicated and there is no easy solution,'' Bush said today. ``But by supporting responsible homeowners with wise policies, we'll help them weather a difficult period.

"But by supporting responsible homeowners with wise policies, we'll help them weather a difficult period." Bush...

Responsible homeowners do not want the deadbeats rewarded!!! This is just plain crazy!

Bush knows more than any advisors to him,that`s why he hired them? Just let it readjust for 3 or 4 years and our kids will be able to afford homes instead of having it drag on for a decade more, Bush`s legacy builds daily

Housing prices should be allowed to fall: Paulson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Housing prices need to fall further to permit shell-shocked housing markets to stabilize and policy-makers should not interfere with that process, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Wednesday.

Speaking to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Paulson said regulators including the Federal Reserve were "vigilant" and doing everything they could to minimize damage to the economy but played down the value of a more direct government role.

"A correction was inevitable and the sooner we work through it, with a minimum of disorder, the sooner we will see home values stabilize, more buyers return to the housing market, and housing will again contribute to economic growth," he said.

http://www.reuters.com/arti...

 Let it reset and get rid of the deadbeats, you hinted that the dems wanted to intervene, and praised McBush, Bush wants to intervene bigtime and pisses on the advisors, Let it reset for the good of everyone, Why should our taxes bailout these people when the person who lives next door saved and put down 10-20% built up equity in thier homes and have a 30 yr fixed at say 8-9%, Just pull out all the equity buy a plasma tv stop paying your loan and get goverment(taxpayers) bailout help for a AFFORDABLE loan, it`s the American way!!!

"Americans owe a staggering $1.1 trillion on home equity loans 

 Little by little, millions of Americans surrendered equity in their homes in recent years. Lulled by good times, they borrowed — sometimes heavily — against the roofs over their heads."

"Now the bill is coming due. As the housing market spirals downward, home equity loans, which turn home sweet home into cash sweet cash, are becoming the next flash point in the mortgage crisis."

"Americans owe a staggering $1.1 trillion on home equity loans — and banks are increasingly worried they may not get some of that money back."

(Ya think? LOL)

"To get it, many lenders are taking the extraordinary step of preventing some people from selling their homes or refinancing their mortgages unless they pay off all or part of their home equity loans first."

 I read and research before CP, I CP so people can read for themselfs if interested, if not thier lose...I agree with you on that (what did I just say). Like I`ve said before, in these disappointing times we have a total disgrace of picks for being our leader. I\m not a Dem I`m not a Rep I am a concerned human who thinks the next Pres. will go down in history as a failure even bigger then the failure we have there now. The more Bush messes with everything now the longer it`s going to last and I think the GOP knows that McCain does not have a chance and wants to make sure the next leader has a lot of crap to shovel before seeing the door,

McCain is not going to win.  Neither is Hillary.  The delegate math doesn't work for her and the high ups in the DNC all know it.  The economy is going to be sucking wind in October/November, so you can kiss any Republicans goodbye.  That's why so many high level Republican leaders retired over the past year, these guys are career politicians, they're not stupid.  They can see the writing on the wall.

 "Don`t cry because it`s over, smile because it happened !"

The Cat In The Hat.........Dr Suess

 My son was one of the first I knew of to fall into the new math of mortgage qualifying in this decade.  I told him he couldn't afford the loan but the real estate agent  and loan officer assured him he could.  Guess who was  right.  This dumb old man.  I could have bailed him out but thought better of it.  He learned something he will never forget.  The banks and real estate companies are not in business to be your buddies, they only want your business.  That is the way it's supposed to be. You just need to have the brains to know what you don't  know and look a little further into the future. More than one or two years. 20% down doesn't guarantee anything in real estate other than you will probably qualify for a loan.  I'm from the old school in that if your P&I is over 25 % of your gross income you are probably buying over your head.  I turned into my father at about 25 yrs. old.

MY RULE OF THUMB : YOU BUY A HOUSE

1) CAUSE YOU LIKE IT

1B) CAUSE YOU CAN MAKE THE PAYMENT

2) YOU GET A TAX BREAK

2B) YOU MAKE MONEY WHEN YOU PAY THE HOUSE OFF

YOU DONT GO INTO BUYING A HOUSE WITH THE INTENTION WITH MAKING MONEY YOU GO INTO IT WITH HAVING A ROOF OVER YOUR HEAD, RAISNG A FAMILY .......OLD SCHOOL STUFF

This financial fiasco, like many others will run it's due course and in the long run the real estate market will be better for it.  Don't get me wrong.... It should have NEVER happened in the first place but wishing it hadn't happened will not make it go away.

Now, hopefully anyone purchasing a house will actually READ each document they sign and fully understand what they are agreeing to before they stick their neck out on the chopping block.  While it has been a painful education for some, you must remember those involved in an ARM are the minority - albeit a sad and vocal minority. Those who didn't get snookered into an ARM (and thus can actually afford their mortgage) account for the vast majority of the real estate transactions.

The predatory real estate people who instigated this mess need to be held accountable and I believe eventually the law will deal with them appropriately.  However tragic this situation is, the market truly needs this re-adjustment and governmental non-interference. But knowing our governments propensity to mettle into affairs where it doesn't belong I'm sure we'll see a taxpayer-funded bail out of historic proportions.

 They skipped town, no accountability for the shysters

During the city’s real estate boom, the legions of sales agent members soared 66 percent, from 1,161 at the end of 2004 to a peak of 1,931 by December 2006, according to the association. Many were newcomers to the business, eager to cash in on an exuberant business climate where, for a brief time, sales came easy, industry insiders said.

Since then, some real estate agents who once made good money have cleaned out their desks and left the business, said Watson-Touchstone Real Estate

Many rushed to become agents when home prices were soaring, but failed to concentrate on developing the relationships that foster long-term success, he said.

“It’s really analogous to the dot com boom,” Lewis said. “People saw money and they just jumped in.”

 Maggiepoo -

They left a paper trail a mile and a half long and while it might take the Feds a while to catch up with them, if they broke the law, the Feds WILL catch up with them. 

Personally, I'd like to see the bastardos featured on "America's Most Wanted" with a bounty on their ass but it'll never happen.

" all it takes is a little trust and pixie dust"  Peter Pan

 unless its a Sche E, refi........

then what matters is positive or at least BE cash flow (low enough payms, maint, taxes and other exp), keeping it occupado, MACRS helps for taxes as does appreciation of course for ultimate  ROR, 3 day notice to pay or quit followed up by 30 day then right to eviction (I've screwed up here by  "carrying renters"), Prev Maint, good prop mgmt, etc. Whether you  "like" the house is inconsequential.

If cash flow is OK, you can ride out bad times. They (prices) will always come around. In the interim, someone else is paying your note. Remember OPM. Its made a lot of regular Joe's rich.

Speculation is OK, if you are LT investor. Trying to be ST get rich quick investor is a good way to become poor (sooner or later). Never met anyone who can time right all the time.

Biggest thing with rentals is either like doing the landlord hassle, or get a good property mgr.

 MP, I can make money in good times or bad (short positions or puts) but for the good of the country I don't revel in bad times.

McCain is a spending cutter. Whatever else he is, I know that. Neither side of the aisle likes a true spending cutter. Thus the Maverick appellation.

For all his warts, they aren't nearly what we will see come out of an Obama or HRC as POTUS. SCOTUS appointments if nothing else.

Obama may well be POTUS. God help us!  (and our current way of life)

His wife said it all the other day for me: "Obama and I got out of the corporate life and decided to just work for the good of the people......"  (she's a hospital administrator @ $350K per year). A real  "for the people" person! She is a bitter mean spirited small minded con artist. But the gullible  "hope" people will have to see for themselves I'm afraid....... 

 Re-Fi, you are a businessman. Do you really get PO'd that some people are profiting in a down market?

For every disaster there is an opportunity created. I always look at things that way. That's a positive way to look at the world I believe. At least in a capitalistic system. You shouldn't look at it as a bad thing.

A bad thing would be someone buying a house that is three times what they know they can afford (if they have an ounce of sense). A bad thing is someone doing a low or no down, int only with a low entry adjustable rate, sometimes with a balloon. They think they will re-fi when rates go down in a year or two and guess what? Even if they do, if the market tanks, they have zero (or negative) equity. Sometimes the rates don't go down either (not in their time frame) which can put them in a bind with ARM's. Again, if you have the resources you can wait bad times out, if not you need to bide your time until you do. Or you can just risk it, sometimes that can give you your start. (I can tell you from experience).

But the worst thing is to get over your head, get into a bind, then blame everyone else -- Bush, Republicans, evil business people (there are evil people in every profession it is our individual responsibility to watch out for them and when wronged see they are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law), and worst of all -- the "system"....... These are the most common ones I hear.

The difference between a capitalist and a socialist is the capitalist realizes we can't all be rich. He doesn't desire that as it is an impossibility. But by working hard, investing well, deferring gratification, the capitalist knows he can attain at least a modicum of wealth and in so doing the economic tide will rise all boats. The socialist wants everyone to be  "rich" which, of course means that they will all be varying degrees of  "poor"  (relative to the capitalist society which we used to have). Only if you are, in the Orwellian "Animal Farm" sense, one of the limousine liberal bureaucrats at or near the apex of power will you be better off in the socialistic model.

no chico I dont I just think of all those poor amway, ebay, flip this house, buy this stock, and any other hair brain get rich scheme that runs on late night TV that milks millions of cattle out of their money .....then we have to bail them out

 so lets not bail em out

not this time

I've told youngsters for years about the pit and prat (not to speak of down) falls of all this  "creative" financing

They just hated me for it. Got tired of tellin em

Then when they go belly up, they hate ya even more!

 Now its McCain's fault!

And the political top starts to spin...................

Around and around........... in a blurrrrr.......... as it werrrrre......... whhirrrrrrrrrr!

On and on......... faster and faster............. until......

SMACK!

(...top just ran into the wall........ of dashed hopes..........disenchanted dopes.....)

(But....wait.....what's that rustling sound???? Oh!!!!  Its a Dem operative.........looking for a new, even bigger  top......and a longer string.....)

Clinton Advisor Linked to Subprime Crisis

 http://weblogs.baltimoresun...

 And the tops spins................

A bunch of regular Joes and Janes looking to snatch a piece of the American dream through home ownership made poor financial decisions and were fleeced by predatory loan brokers who sold loan paper to buyers who were even greedier.

With proper regulation and oversight of the financial industry, it never woulda, shoulda or coulda happened.

The first  of the shared responsibility lies with the government's failure to prevent such abuses from happening in the first place.

The second parties sharing responsibility are the brokers and lenders, whose greed outweighed their respective morals and common sense.

But while the borrowers are indeed victims of their own ignorance, they shouldn't have been allowed to become prey of the loan hucksters and hustlers in the first place, which places the blame squarely back onto the government and the scammers.

So, we bail out the lenders who bought the bad paper while the brokers skate free with the front money they scammed from the borrowers and the poor suckers eat excrement.

There's something wrong with this picture.

Just because lots of regular folks are financially challenged doesn't mean that it's okay for the government to look the other way while slick operators screw them over, that's why we have vice and bunko laws to prevent scammers from all manner of predatory cons and hustles.

You can't legally run a Ponzi pyramid scam or other con job on ignorant victims, and predatory lending falls squarely under that definition. It should have never been allowed to happen in the first place.

Yes, the victims may have been dumb, but they should get the bailout, before the crooks and cons. To bail out the crooks while the victims remain screwed is nothing less than unconscionable.

Maybe it's necessary to bail out the lenders to mitigate and prevent exacerbating the economic damage to the country, but the victims should also be granted at least equal relief.

Let's use an analogy.

Your grandmother signs one of those horrible contracts offered by predatory siding peddlers and faces losing her home to the lender that bought the huckster's paper. The huckster walks away with a fistful of dollars, the lender gets her house that's worth less than the note and granny faces spending the last of her golden years homeless in a cardboard box under the freeway.

But the government decides to bail out the lender while grandma ends up in your guest room or some smelly rest home.

Sound fair? Of course not, if the lender deserves to be bailed out, then so does granny. How about the original hustler? Shouldn't he or she be chased down and forced to make restitution at least to granny and possibly to the lender, too?

Yeah, of course. Duh.

From Politico.com, here is a large, underlying part of what's gone wrong in the financial industry:

McCain guru linked to subprime crisis

The general co-chairman of John McCain’s presidential campaign, former Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas), led the charge in 1999 to repeal a Depression-era banking regulation law that Democrat Barack Obama claimed on Thursday contributed significantly to today’s economic turmoil.

“A regulatory structure set up for banks in the 1930s needed to change because the nature of business had changed,” the Illinois senator running for president said in a New York economic speech. “But by the time [it] was repealed in 1999, the $300 million lobbying effort that drove deregulation was more about facilitating mergers than creating an efficient regulatory framework.”

Gramm’s role in the swift and dramatic recent restructuring of the nation’s investment houses and practices didn’t stop there.

A year after the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealed the old regulations, Swiss Bank UBS gobbled up brokerage house Paine Weber. Two years later, Gramm settled in as a vice chairman of UBS’s new investment banking arm.

Later, he became a major player in its government affairs operation. According to federal lobbying disclosure records, Gramm lobbied Congress, the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department about banking and mortgage issues in 2005 and 2006.

During those years, the mortgage industry pressed Congress to roll back strong state rules that sought to stem the rise of predatory tactics used by lenders and brokers to place homeowners in high-cost mortgages.

For his work, Gramm and two other lobbyists collected $750,000 in fees from UBS’s American subsidiary. In the past year, UBS has written down more then $18 billion in exposure to subprime loans and other risky securities and is considering cutting as many as 8,000 jobs.......

For more on Gramm's skullduggery and McCain's close relationship to Gramm:

http://www.politico.com/new...

 The GLBA (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act) gave us greater privacy rights.

"Under the GLBA, financial institutions must provide their clients a privacy notice that explains what information the company gathers about the client, where this information is shared, and how the company safeguards that information. This privacy notice must be given to the client prior to entering into an agreement to do business. There are exceptions to this when the client accepts a delayed receipt of the notice in order to complete a transaction on a timely basis. This has been somewhat mitigated due to online acknowledgement agreements requiring the client to read or scroll through the notice and check a box to accept terms.

The privacy notice must also explain to the customer the opportunity to ‘opt-out’. Opting out means that the client can say "no" to allowing their information to be shared with affiliated parties. The Fair Credit Reporting Act is responsible for the ‘opt-out’ opportunity, but the privacy notice must inform the customer of this right under the GLBA. The client cannot opt-out of:

• information shared with those providing priority service to the financial institution
• marketing of products or services for the financial institution
• when the information is deemed legally required."

It is only a couple of extreme left wingers that are making the accusations against that naughty "skullduggerin' guru".

 Let me see if I get this right. If you bought an over priced home that is now worth about 60% of what you paid and you can't afford it and never could, then the  Govt. should bail you out to prop up the banks. On the other hand, if you bought an overpriced home that is now worth 60% of what you paid, but you can afford it, and can continue  to pay for it, it's ok if you take it in the shorts and continue to prop up the banks. Did I miss anything ?  I predict that many people will walk away from devalued homes with upside down loans rather continue paying for a loser.  I would if I was in that position.

Drilnliftcrude says: "The GLBA (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act) gave us greater privacy rights. "Under the GLBA, financial institutions must provide their clients a privacy notice that explains what information the company gathers about the client, where this information is shared, and how the company safeguards that information. This privacy notice must be given to the client .....It is only a couple of extreme left wingers that are making the accusations against that naughty "skullduggerin' guru".

Crude, I know you want to defend your dogs, but the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act is far deeper in content and intent than your above offering citing the unrelated Fair Credit Reporting Act legislation.

Here's just a part of the summary which can be viewed in its entirety at : http://banking.senate.gov/c...

As you will find in the following excerpt, the act repealed long standing banking regulations designed to prevent the kind of abuses which have so far brought the country to its financial knees and verge of economic collapse. 

Financial Services Modernization Act 

Gramm-Leach-Bliley

TITLE I -- FACILITATING AFFILIATION AMONG BANKS, SECURITIES FIRMS, AND INSURANCE COMPANIES 

• Repeals the restrictions on banks affiliating with securities firms contained in sections 20 and 32 of the Glass-Steagall Act.  
• Creates a new "financial holding company" under section 4 of the Bank Holding Company Act. Such holding company can engage in a statutorily provided list of financial activities, including insurance and securities underwriting and agency activities, merchant banking and insurance company portfolio investment activities. Activities that are "complementary" to financial activities also are authorized. The nonfinancial activities of firms predominantly engaged in financial activities (at least 85% financial) are grandfathered for at least 10 years, with a possibility for a five year extension.  
• The Federal Reserve may not permit a company to form a financial holding company if any of its insured depository institution subsidiaries are not well capitalized and well managed, or did not receive at least a satisfactory rating in their most recent CRA exam.  
• If any insured depository institution or insured depository institution affiliate of a financial holding company received less than a satisfactory rating in its most recent CRA exam, the appropriate Federal banking agency may not approve any additional new activities or acquisitions under the authorities granted under the Act.  
• Provides for State regulation of insurance, subject to a standard that no State may discriminate against persons affiliated with a bank.  
• Provides that bank holding companies organized as a mutual holding companies will be regulated on terms comparable to other bank holding companies.  
• Lifts some restrictions governing nonbank banks. 
• Provides for a study of the use of subordinated debt to protect the financial system and deposit funds from "too big to fail" institutions and a study on the effect of financial modernization on the accessibility of small business and farm loans.  
• Streamlines bank holding company supervision by clarifying the regulatory roles of the Federal Reserve as the umbrella holding company supervisor, and the State and other Federal financial regulators which ‘functionally' regulate various affiliates.  
• Provides for Federal bank regulators to prescribe prudential safeguards for bank organizations engaging in new financial activities.  
• Prohibits FDIC assistance to affiliates and subsidiaries of banks and thrifts.  
• Allows a national bank to engage in new financial activities in a financial subsidiary, except for insurance underwriting, merchant banking, insurance company portfolio investments, real estate development and real estate investment, so long as the aggregate assets of all financial subsidiaries do not exceed 45% of the parent bank's assets or $50 billion, whichever is less. To take advantage of the new activities through a financial subsidiary, the national bank must be well capitalized and well managed. In addition, the top 100 banks are required to have an issue of outstanding subordinated debt. Merchant banking activities may be approved as a permissible activity beginning 5 years after the date of enactment of the Act.  
• Ensures that appropriate anti-trust review is conducted for new financial combinations allowed under the Act.  
• Provides for national treatment for foreign banks wanting to engage in the new financial activities authorized under the Act.  
• Allows national banks to underwrite municipal revenue bonds 

TITLE II -- FUNCTIONAL REGULATION 

• Amends the Federal securities laws to incorporate functional regulation of bank securities activities.  
• The broad exemptions banks have from broker-dealer regulation would be replaced by more limited exemptions designed to permit banks to continue their current activities and to develop new products.  
• Provides for limited exemptions from broker-dealer registration for transactions in the following areas: trust, safekeeping, custodian, shareholder and employee benefit plans, sweep accounts, private placements (under certain conditions), and third party networking arrangements to offer brokerage services to bank customers, among others.  
• Allows banks to continue to be active participants in the derivatives business for all credit and equity swaps (other than equity swaps to retail customers). 
• Provides for a "jump ball" rulemaking and resolution process between the SEC and the Federal Reserve regarding new hybrid products.  
• Amends the Investment Company Act to address potential conflicts of interest in the mutual fund business and amendments to the Investment Advisers Act to require banks that advise mutual funds to register as investment advisers.

Two top McCain advisors lobbied for predatory lender

http://rawstory.com/news/20...

Bartley, you've missed the basic underlying point that hustlers should never have been allowed to conduct their scams in the first place to defraud their marks.

How difficult is it to understand that scammers should be stopped before they start, or at least before they get to too many victims?

How many analogies does it take for you to get it?

Cheap, small time hustlers with other lower level con games are busted by law enforcement as soon as their scams are uncovered.

That should have happened here with these scammers dealing in upper level markets.

It didn't.

And that is the plain, inexcusable failure of government to protect its less sav vy citizens.

It doesn't matter how dumb the victims may have been.

That doesn't excuse the scammer.

"It's their own fault for being dumb" doesn't justify the crook's crime.

 Another thing that bothers me is thart nobody is pointing a finger at the realtors. How do you think the buyers got hooked up with the lenders in the first place. They new exactly what they were doing and where to direct those people.

 I pointed, I pointed !!!I

`"Its a bad situation and finance companies, uneducated home buyers, and cheerleader realtors (who have taken the money and ran) are all to blame."

During the city’s real estate boom, the legions of sales agent members soared 66 percent, from 1,161 at the end of 2004 to a peak of 1,931 by December 2006, according to the association. Many were newcomers to the business, eager to cash in on an exuberant business climate where, for a brief time, sales came easy, industry insiders said.

Since then, some real estate agents who once made good money have cleaned out their desks and left the business, said Watson-Touchstone Real Estate

Many rushed to become agents when home prices were soaring, but failed to concentrate on developing the relationships that foster long-term success, he said.

“It’s really analogous to the dot com boom,” Lewis said. “People saw money and they just jumped in.”

Well, Chico, I guess some of you guys have no sympathy for the mortgage scam victims.

They're just dumb, meaningless, faceless, greedy people, too, no better than the shysters.

I wonder if it would make a difference if one of the victims was your mother.

Yeah, I know, your mother would never have gotten into the deal. You wouldn't have let her.

But if she or grandma or aunt Sally or your sister did buy in to the pie-in-the-sky subprime scam without consulting you, would it make a difference?

Just askin.

So, Refiguy, what's it like to refinance one's house now in the wake of this turbulent mortgage industry?

Is money available for a homeowner to convert an ARM or Interest Only loan to a Fixed Rate?

What kind of FICO score must a borrower have to be accepted?

What interest rate might one have to pay?

Are interest rates falling proportionately to the FED cuts?

Where is the mortgage industry headed from here?

are you trying to be a smart ass !   picture 1985 and you will have your answer ...... although 30 % are in trouble 70 % are not

they did not use their house as a ATM nor did they buy a house to impress thier friends, nor did they try to leverage their house

to buy another to flip it to make money  and retire at 23 and 1/2 . 

to refi a house under FHA guidelines 580 up to 95% is the guidelines if you didnt ATM your house you should be fine if you did 

it to buy a boat, RV, stocks, the I dont see how it is anyone's fault .

If your buying a house .....Hmm  save the down payment like the old days ....find a house you could afford come to me I find

you a GOOD OLD FASHION FIXED RATE LOAN.....................HOPE THAT HELPS   

 Saber, my mothers been dead a long time. That notwithstanding, I would have told her (just like I told you previously I have told the kids and their cohorts -- which they resented me for BTW-- )

"IF YA CAN'T AFFORD THE HOOCH AND HAVE TA RESORT TO  "CREATIVE FINANCING", DON'T  BUY IT!  SAVE YER SHECKLES AND WAIT UNTIL YOU CAN DO IT WITH A DECENT DOWN, FIXED RATE, AND A HISTORICALLY NORMALIZED SP. NO RECENTLY INFLATED APPRAISAL, INT ONLY, STAND ALONE 2ND TO MAKE UP DIFF, NO INFLATED OR APOCHRYPHAL EARNINGS ON YER PART, MADE UP EARNING HISTORY, AND PURCH DEPENDENT UPON INSTANT OR SOON TO ACTUALIZE EQUITY BY APPRECIATION!"

Yep...........woulda even told that to me mum........ RIP

And just as YEP, those that did all the above things deserves what they gets. Dance with those that brung ya, pay as ya go, and should ya decide ta do the dance, be ready ta pay the fiddler. With cash money!

And most of all.......NO WHINING....................

 If your buying a house .....Hmm  save the down payment like the old days ....find a house you could afford come to me I find

you a GOOD OLD FASHION FIXED RATE LOAN.....................HOPE THAT HELPS  

Yer advice is gold Re-Fi. Now if they'd just listen..................

thanks Chico

 okay- I have read and read and read.  You guys are all very interesting and come to your point of view based upon your own experiences, education, etc.  I just have one thing to state: I am not very sophisticated.  I am intelligent but NOT sophisticated.   AND I just don't follow these politics at this point in my life like I see you do.  My perspective says: If little old me knew enough how to balance my earnings and understand the home I qualified for was NOT what I could really afford even waaaayyyy back at age 20 then I just cannot muster up the sympathy for others that went for the gusto!  I mean, why should I work my rear off to save the "deadbeats" as we are calling them?  It is bad enough that we have to pay in the end (and I do mean in the end) for all the people who default on the credit cards- now this, too?  UGH!  makes me want to defect to Canada.  I know this is not very Christian of me- and I was raised in a charitable home- but I guess I am getting old and tired.  This country seems to be becoming more like the scenes of Banglah Desh from my childhood.  Limbless beggars with hungry people stepping over them in crowded streets.  Survival of the grabbiest.  Comments on that?

 "Don`t cry because it`s over, smile because it happened !"        The Cat In The Hat.........Dr Suess

It was a good party and many went home early and happy, now the party`s over and you have to clean up the mess...

Yes, we are left to clean up.  YUCK.  I guess the only thing that I have to put in is agreement with some/contrary to others.  I do NOT see any buyers as innocent.  Sure, others may have profitted from the buyers but just as a con man earns from someone else's blind greed and imagining an opportunity- so goes the real estate industry.  The "innocent" party invites the con by exhibiting greedy self interested traits.  Not innocent.  At least the con admits his part.  People are not loaning money out of the goodness of their hearts.  It is business.  

It is a whole way of being.  And I never took any "gifts" from dates, either.  First of all, it is wrong.  Why?  Unspoken:  It is unethical to take advantage of someone- and if you do then there might come the point of the evening to pay back the gift.  This is instinctive.   I do NOT think the defaulting people are innocent.  I just cannot agree with  the grandma argument.  It does not convince me.  Try something I can understand as real.  I just can't picture my grandmother getting herself into such a position.  I don't even know anyone in their 60s with such pie in the sky desires beyond their actual means.  I DO know a zillion young people raised on credit cards with buy now/pay never.  Isn't the vast majority of the default "victims" (term in error) under 40?  Maybe I hang with the wrong group of old codgers.  Maybe if I hit the bars...  or hung out at Jack-in-the-Box. :)