I think one of the major problems with this, though, is that everyone and his brother is trying to convince us that the home equity is actual money. The preponderance of home equity loans is one example. Then the stupid, at least here, East/West Mortgage ads, their newest is to say,"Tired of paying 18% on your credit cards? Would you like to lower it to 6%?" What that means is you take out an additional home equity loan or refinance your mortgage including the amount of your credit card debt, so then you pay off your credit cards and instead pay the extra loan or mortgage. Which, on the one hand, is basically what credit counselors do, kinda. Consolidating debt into one loan isn't new. But, they don't tell you how that translates into the mortgage, by adding $5k, $10k or more to your THIRTY YEAR payment plan, how much extra are you really paying on that money? Are you saving anything than if you just started paying off your credit cards to begin with?

The fact that there are so many such ads--coming at us from so many directions, from institutions we can rationalize wouldn't try to cheat us, they're trying to make money from us and they can't do that if we can't pay, so if we can't pay, they wouldn't be loaning us the money--is what the problem is. The average American has been conditioned for YEARS to trust information from certain sources (banks, the gub-ment) and they get suckered in by these money grubbing fools. Interest only mortgages anyone? I'm not a finance expert but when those popped up I looked at my husband and said - does anything about that sound like a good idea?? But there are a lot of slick talkers out there with initials after their names and people believe them.

It's so frustrating, especially when the government is bailing out those slick-talkers and their equally guilty prey (for not researching the whole thing more and taking someone at face value) AND I DID THE RIGHT THING AND GOT A LOAN THAT I CAN PAY AND AM PAYING RESPONSIBLY! Where's my bailout? Refinance?