Subprime bailout: help thy neighbor or teach 'em a lesson?

[soupkitchen96]

Most people I know are in favor of the subprime bailouts. I feel incredibly selfish for thinking this, but shouldn't people who bought more home than they could afford pay for their own mess? Why should I -- someone who doesn't even own a FIRST home -- be taxed to help these people out?

I know a lot of people got tricked into buying these homes, but if there was actual fraud involved, shouldn't these people be able to sue the banks that gave them false information about the loans?

I must sound like a jerk. But that's the beneift of the internet. You can voice your real opinion without getting punched in the nose.

[arcadian]

owning a home is a big part of the american dream. it is understandable why so many people jumped at the chance. i don't think everyone affected by this is a greedy sob who "bought too much house".

i'm sure some people are buying their first homes. when you see a rare opportunity to fulfill a dream wouldn't you jump at the chance too? now these same people are in danger of losing their only investment in the world. i say we should give them a break.

[soupkitchen96]

But what about people who had the same dream but held off on purchasing the home until they were sure that they could absolutely afford it?

[toey]

If you research the details of this so-called "bailout" (it's not really a bailout since it isn't mandatory that the mortgage companies participate), not many people will qualify for help. The homeowner has to have an adjustable rate mortgage that was taken out between January 2005 and July 2007 that is set to adjust between January 2008 and July 2010. If the homeowner has a late payment in the last year, they don't qualify. Also, the homeowner has to prove that they can't handle the adjusted payment but can handle the current payment. No numbers are given as guidelines.

I personally feel that only people that were the victims of fraud should have the terms of the loans changed.

[jenai]

Don't worry - you aren't the only one feeling that this bailout is not fair for the people who did their homework and prepared themselves for home ownership. I was offered one of those loans, was "pre-approved" for almost TWICE the amount of money I ended up borrowing. I decided on a fixed rate and actually bought one of the first of those adustible rate foreclosures. This was my FIRST home purchase and was MY American dream but I wanted to KEEP my home so I did my homework and prepared myself. I cleared all my debt and repaired my credit mistakes from my youth. I saved and built up my income to debt ration and still it has been harder than expected with a recent unforeseen layoff. I am the one who deserves assistance, I didn't take the easy road. I have no pitty for anyone who dosen't read what they sign. There is no way to pull off a fraud of that magnitude if you read what you sign and do your homework. There's no free lunch and if it seems to good to be true - it is. Those in my neighborhood who's only way of purchasing a home was to use a subprime lending program are the ones who do not have the income to even take care of standard maintenance. You can spot them just by driving down the road. It brings all the property in the development down. I know I sound hard but I am not the smartest person on my street and if I can navigate the process of buying a home then I think just about anyone who isn't looking for something for near nothing can do as well.

[Philip Brewer]

As toey says, there's certainly no bailout so far.

What the treasury announced (with big fanfare) amounts to nothing but a couple of technical rules. The big bundles of securitized mortgages need to not be "managed," or else they fall under different tax and accounting rules. The whole big deal was the treasury saying, "Just renegotiating terms on mortgages that would otherwise default is not 'managing' the securitized bundle."

No doubt a lot of people would object to government money to bail these people out, but there's no sign of that. So far there's not even any pressure to speak of for lenders to actually do any renegotiation--just a nod to say that it'd be okay if they felt like it.

[Beignet]

HousingPANIC - The Housing Bubble and Crash Blog with an Attitude Problem


Financial guru's and a lot of the MSM (main stream media) read this blog.

The majority of people I know do not think anyone should be bailed out.

I am not sure how I feel, I know a lot of minorities and the elderly were taken advantage of.

Food for thought: I am very concered about our economy. 1 million homes in 08 will go into foreclosure, the trickle down affect is going to be greater than an recession. I've even read an editiorial mentioning the GDII 2008.

Well, I am glad I found Wisebread. I've sent the forums link to some friends.

I know professional women, who with me, just started cliping coupons. I have a lot to learn!

Beignet

[will1363]

The bailout definitely sucks for those of us that are responsible citizens. The same goes for bankruptcy protection. Some of us are willing to work harder to dig ourselves out of the holes we've willingly jumped into. Others prefer to call it a mistake and accept the "help" of fellow citizens. I haven't met any bankrupt people who have taken on second and third jobs to pay their debts. Nor have I met any bankrupt people who, after receiving bankrptcy protection, have paid back discharged debts once they have the means to do so. Similarly, I doubt that those who receive subprime bailouts will pay back the debt they contracted for once they have the ability to do so.

My friends that have declared bankruptcy are the laziest, most irresponsible and most selfish people I know. Honest and productive people won't avail themselves of subprime protection - lazy people will. That's the very reason why it shouldn't be offered.

[acaciacapital]

i am definitely against any bailouts. As I have gotten older, I have become increasingly skeptical about where my tax dollars go. I am against any type of government handout for anything, and this is one of the more clearcut cases. A single mother collecting welfare is one thing, but the subprime crisis is completely different.

If the people were straight out lied to, then they should do what everyone else does, press charges and sue. Any other case and it's tough luck buddy. I have gotten stuck on a house pretty bad, but I didnt read something properly. That's my fault. There is no personally accountability in this country, everyone wants the Gov't handout, even though it is still their money.

The government/Fed needs to stop tinkering with a free market, let the mess sort itself out. Things will be difficult for some, but thats life. We are not talking about reaching out and feeding the poor of Africa, we are talking about people who have cars, and air conditioning, etc. Trust me, they will survive.

[farley2k]

I had to vote for the bailout mostly because I don't want to hurt myself. I am deeply selfish in some ways and everything I have read indicates that if we just let them sink they will bring the economy with them. I don't agree with their decisions but I don't want to suffer for it any more than I have too and I think bailing some of them out will be cheaper for me in the long run.