Why are we having a foreclosure "crisis"? From the news reports I've heard, it's largely because people bought more or mortgaged more than they could reasonably afford, and the money-hungry financial institutions let them. So why should we bail out anybody for making stupid decisions?
I offer as examples:
1) A man in the Dallas area is losing his home. The home was almost paid for when his mother, who lived in Venezuela, died. The man said the only way he could take his sizable family to the funeral was to take out a home equity loan at an adjustable rate. Soon after he did this, he had a heart attack and was forced to retire on disability. His reduced income is not enough to make his escalating house payment.
The heart attack was completely out of this man's control, but if he didn't have the money to take his whole family to Venezuela, he shouldn't have done it! Especially if the only way he could do it was to mortgage his home!
2) A single mother who works for the transit system in New York makes $50,000 a year. She saw this house and fell in love with it -- a $400,000 house. The financial institution gave her the loan for the house. She quickly discovered that she could not make the payment.
What moron doesn't know that a $50,000 income won't cover the payments for a $400,000 home?!!! Mr. Essie May and I make more than twice this lady's income, and we bought a $110,000 home. And guess what -- we've had no problems making the payments, we are in no danger of losing it, and we haven't shown up on the news in a "poor, pitiful me" segment!
Come on, people, let's all try to practice that dying art called THINKING!
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