tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19409947.post6539742633739931808..comments2023-09-09T21:50:08.809+10:00Comments on Dancing Mouse: Is this TRUE?Ms Brown Mousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06128283343279442537noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19409947.post-83335926830404280292008-09-28T02:14:00.000+10:002008-09-28T02:14:00.000+10:00No, it's true. People are walking away. There is a...No, it's true. People are walking away. There is a city some distance from San Francisco that used to be considered a commutable suburb, when everyone was dying to own homes. (The farther away from SF, the less expensive, so that's where the dirtbags went.) Now that town is full of abandoned houses. Well, the banks "own" them now.<BR/>But Lee is right; the erstwhile owners' credit is undoubtedly ruined.cookiecrumbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00741894180391507513noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19409947.post-43464267965674501402008-09-27T17:11:00.000+10:002008-09-27T17:11:00.000+10:00Lee,thanks for that, I didn't think it could possi...Lee,<BR/>thanks for that, I didn't think it could possibly be that easy to dodge a mortgage debt. That Mr Sheehan must be making things up.<BR/>A mess it is indeed, eh?Ms Brown Mousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06128283343279442537noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19409947.post-77623162799779256502008-09-27T16:01:00.000+10:002008-09-27T16:01:00.000+10:00Hi DMM -It's not how I understand it.When you comm...Hi DMM -<BR/>It's not how I understand it.<BR/>When you commit to a mortgage, you owe the bank.<BR/><BR/>I have heard that people do "walk away" and mail in the keys to the mortgage company. But they still owe the money. Their credit would be destroyed and the bank/mortgage company would pursue them.<BR/><BR/>The only ways "out" that I know of are to renegotiate the loan or for the borrower to declare bankruptcy. Bankruptcy laws were enacted early in our history in response to debtors' prisons. But in recent years, bankruptcy laws have changed to become more restrictive for individuals. In bankruptcy you must liquidate whatever you have with a few exceptions and pay everything you can. Then the bankruptcy stays on your record for 10 years. Half of all U.S. bankruptcies are due to crushing medical bills. <BR/><BR/>The part that you didn't want to go into - the fraud and outrageous lending practices using insane financial instruments - is a HUGE problem. Deregulation began in the 1980s under the Reagan administration and continued through to the present Bush administration. The lack of regulation and oversight led to a free-for-all in lending, which when the housing market began to slump, could no longer be sustained. <BR/><BR/>There were borrowers who were stupid and greedy. There were also borrowers who were lied to and manipulated. But there were way too many lenders who took the money (fees and re-sale of bad mortgages) and ran.<BR/><BR/>Just one gal's understanding of this mess...<BR/>- LeePink Granitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14868107997163851415noreply@blogger.com