I procrastinate waking up every single morning. I don't even get out of bed the 4th time my alarm clock blares in my ear; I just hit it and roll back over.
Q, you said, "Xin, you can't have it both ways. Either it takes a long time to foreclose and people should stay in their homes until evicted or we should speed up foreclosures so houses can pass on to permanent owners at lower prices. Which is it?"
I'm not sure what you mean by having it both ways. Right now the fact is that it takes a very long time for banks to foreclose and it is taking even longer than normal because of the various prevention efforts. I am saying that if people were realistic about their inability to pay and stopped paying sooner and banks foreclosed faster then prices would come down faster. I am not supporting the current policies of delaying foreclosure and non-stop government interventions. What about that is "have it both ways"?
And yet the author of this comment is researching the same information on ways of making extra cash, same as the "myspace generation" are. Your generation is the problem with our global economy and our generation has to pay for it.
Philip, the problem is that many states are NOT non-recourse, meaning you cannot simply hand the house (or business) back.
If you would like to provide a complete list of which states are and are not non-recourse, then we can have a meaningful discussion. To continue to make this vague statement that "some," "many" or "most" are just adds to the confusion and misinformation.
"#8, I'm not sure I understand this. Why would banks increase interest rates for you? Wouldn't they only increase interest rates for the irresponsible since their ability to pay has no effect on yours?"
#8 here, I think you are talking about loans already in existence. I was speaking about NEW loans. New loans will be hurt by foreclosures because, assuming the house is underwater, the bank will not be able to recoup the loan they made. This means in order to meet their financial targets (margin specifically), they will need to collect more $$$ from new loans. Think of banking as a risk pool, as some in the pool start to cost the banks money, they have to increase rates to balance the level of the pool.
You are right about your second point, I was contradicting myself. Foreclosures are good for those of us who don't have loans and are hoping prices will return to more normal levels (they have in some areas, but here in the Bay Area CA they are still high IMHO). I meant that the bank forgiveness and gov't assistance that is going on is propping up prices. I understand that some people met hardships, but a lot of folks just bought houses they couldn't afford and bid up prices, assuming that the value of the home would go up and they could use that equity later to re-fi.
I used to procrastinate all the time when I was in college. I haven't really continued that trend after graduation except in one area... cleaning. I really hate cleaning and put it off as long as I can stand it.
"I guess I would have to ask why a house would be allowed to be surrounded by boarded up homes."
"I agree with JT here. The faster these homes actually foreclose the faster the prices will go down. "
First off, the answer to question number one is the subject of the article: for various reasons, some related to lender bureaucracy, some to the legal requirements of foreclosure, the process is lengthy. Even after a home is foreclosed, the lender then has to actually sell it. Sometimes this happens at an auction - which must be scheduled, publicized, and then hopefully have people attend with money. Many people are still not in the position to purchase a home, even at a foreclosure discount. I am envious of you, JT, if you live in an area of the country where you don't drive down the street and see these homes. This is a real issue - so real that as I mentioned, the lenders have an actual mathematical formula to determine the decrease in value of a home that has "foreclosure stigma."
Xin, you can't have it both ways. Either it takes a long time to foreclose and people should stay in their homes until evicted or we should speed up foreclosures so houses can pass on to permanent owners at lower prices. Which is it?
Suppose one business is buying a factory from another. It's supposed to make payments for 30 years, but the contract provides that it can quit making payments at any time if it gives the factory back.
Now suppose business conditions change, such that it makes business sense to give the factory back and quit making payments. Do you think it's not going to do so? If it's following the terms of the contract, I'd say it would be both legal and ethical. (In fact, it'd probably be a lapse of its fiduciary duty to its shareholders not to do so.)
Under the law in many states, that's what a mortgage amounts to: Pay for 30 years, or give the house to the bank.
What's really interesting to me is why people think it's different when it's a person sticking to the terms of the contract, versus when it's a business doing so. I wrote a post about it a while back called Don't Treat Businesses Like People.
Are actually worse procrastinators. You see, while I put off doing things, I eventually get them done. Before that, I get a lot of nothing done. People who don't procrastinate usually move from one task to the next without stopping to do nothing. They never get nothing done, whereas I always get nothing done FIRST.
We always pay bills promptly, no late fees here. Letting the govt USE the interest from the tax return is not an issue, is kinda our contribution to the fight against the federal debt. & then for it to be spent so unwisely & arrogantly just slays us, but we are TRYING to remain good citizens. Have to agree w/most the posters here (yes, we put off housework til the people are less than 1 hr away, the stack of ironing is 3 feet tall), but sometimes it's best in the end, b/c we try not to get upset @ our procrastinating hearts. & the guests don't show up or the ironing is not needed til...so why were we agitated?
Thanks for all of these interesting ideas and suggestions! My newest dilemma is whether to start shopping at stores like Wal-Mart that are now offering local and organic produce.
Fasting, if done properly, actually has many health benefits, including cleaning toxins out of your body. But don't think you can gorge yourself on McD's and All You Can Eat Buffets for a month, then do a fast and not pay for it. There is lots of good, reliable info out there - just do a little research first. Fasting will also give you a small glimpse into what it feels like to not be able to afford 3 meals a day.
PS - most of the list was ridiculous but I was worth reading for the 'free' laughs. :)
I always procrastinate. But I'll do my taxes ASAP (this year was in February) if I'm due a refund I file right away, otherwise I wait until April 15...
I agree with JT here. The faster these homes actually foreclose the faster the prices will go down. Those who are depleting their savings to stay in the homes they know they will ultimately lose are not helping themselves or the general market. Again, I think it's good that these homeowners are actually staying even if they cannot afford the mortgage anymore because they are hopefully keeping the properties in livable condition when it comes time to sell.
Not too badly with money, but when it comes to home improvement projects and cleaning I'm terrible! I also sometimes put off appointments I dread like going to the dentist.
I am a born procrastinator...I clean my house the morning that I am getting visitors and I am always late in paying my Gas Bill...last month it had been about 7 months since I paid it. I just kept putting it off. Its finally paid..IN FULL!
"It hurts because the banks have to increase mortgage rates (e.g. credit becomes more expensive) for those of us who would choose to use it responsibly. The responsible folks have actually be hurt twice by this."
#8, I'm not sure I understand this. Why would banks increase interest rates for you? Wouldn't they only increase interest rates for the irresponsible since their ability to pay has no effect on yours?
"Now, instead of letting the houses return to a reasonable level so those of us who are responsible and have been saving for a down payment for 6 years can buy at "real" prices, the gov't and the banks are trying to prop home prices up and keep people in houses they "own", even though they actually own no equity in those houses."
Apologies, but you're going to have to excuse my ignorance once again. It would seem to me that allowing people to default would be a good thing here, no? If we want affordable houses then I would assume that to mean lower prices; and one way to get lower prices would be to allow foreclosures to happen. Hmm, I must be missing something here because it would also appear to be the case that foreclosures are a good way to return housing back to realistic levels.
"In addition to what Guest #8 noted, foreclosures also affect neighboring property values. The lenders actually factor in foreclosure stigma when evaluating mortgage modifications. What do you think would happen to the value of your home if it was surrounded by boarded-up, foreclosed homes?"
#10, yeah, that would seem to be a problem. I guess I would have to ask why a house would be allowed to be surrounded by boarded up homes. Surely, there must be someone willing to live in those homes. Why can't the banks sell the homes at auction?
Thanks in advance for the response. I'm new to the United States and I'm learning a lot!
This may be strange but...
I find that when I have a presentation to do for work, it helps to think about it for a while, but not actually do it until one to two days before it is due. All the ideas I have been thinking about come together at the same time and I don't get writer's block!
I definitely procrastinate on things especially related to money. I always request an extension for my taxes. I actually put off filing returns for four years. Not a good look. I also procrastinate with cleaning, organizing, and returning calls. A lot of it has to do with being monkey minded and feeling overwhelmed. I know it's not good. Le sigh.
The best advice for your friend is to seek out assistance from a local Legal Aid for more state-specific advice. Many states are enacting special mortgage crisis legislation that mandates things like mediation between the homeowner and the bank and also providing funds to legal agencies to assist.
A short sale may be the best solution, but he should still be careful about negotiating a good deal with the bank regarding the deficiency. The lender can forgive the deficiency, but he should still be cautious about how the bank will report this to the IRS; if this isn't addressed, they can and will report it as income.
He is doing the absolute right thing by staying put and banking those payments for now.
I procrastinate waking up every single morning. I don't even get out of bed the 4th time my alarm clock blares in my ear; I just hit it and roll back over.
Q, you said, "Xin, you can't have it both ways. Either it takes a long time to foreclose and people should stay in their homes until evicted or we should speed up foreclosures so houses can pass on to permanent owners at lower prices. Which is it?"
I'm not sure what you mean by having it both ways. Right now the fact is that it takes a very long time for banks to foreclose and it is taking even longer than normal because of the various prevention efforts. I am saying that if people were realistic about their inability to pay and stopped paying sooner and banks foreclosed faster then prices would come down faster. I am not supporting the current policies of delaying foreclosure and non-stop government interventions. What about that is "have it both ways"?
Their service is terrble, don't make a card with tthem.
APOLIGIES to bob i have no issue with his article other than it was well written and infromative my issue was with jesse who left the first comment.
And yet the author of this comment is researching the same information on ways of making extra cash, same as the "myspace generation" are. Your generation is the problem with our global economy and our generation has to pay for it.
Philip, the problem is that many states are NOT non-recourse, meaning you cannot simply hand the house (or business) back.
If you would like to provide a complete list of which states are and are not non-recourse, then we can have a meaningful discussion. To continue to make this vague statement that "some," "many" or "most" are just adds to the confusion and misinformation.
"#8, I'm not sure I understand this. Why would banks increase interest rates for you? Wouldn't they only increase interest rates for the irresponsible since their ability to pay has no effect on yours?"
#8 here, I think you are talking about loans already in existence. I was speaking about NEW loans. New loans will be hurt by foreclosures because, assuming the house is underwater, the bank will not be able to recoup the loan they made. This means in order to meet their financial targets (margin specifically), they will need to collect more $$$ from new loans. Think of banking as a risk pool, as some in the pool start to cost the banks money, they have to increase rates to balance the level of the pool.
You are right about your second point, I was contradicting myself. Foreclosures are good for those of us who don't have loans and are hoping prices will return to more normal levels (they have in some areas, but here in the Bay Area CA they are still high IMHO). I meant that the bank forgiveness and gov't assistance that is going on is propping up prices. I understand that some people met hardships, but a lot of folks just bought houses they couldn't afford and bid up prices, assuming that the value of the home would go up and they could use that equity later to re-fi.
I used to procrastinate all the time when I was in college. I haven't really continued that trend after graduation except in one area... cleaning. I really hate cleaning and put it off as long as I can stand it.
"I guess I would have to ask why a house would be allowed to be surrounded by boarded up homes."
"I agree with JT here. The faster these homes actually foreclose the faster the prices will go down. "
First off, the answer to question number one is the subject of the article: for various reasons, some related to lender bureaucracy, some to the legal requirements of foreclosure, the process is lengthy. Even after a home is foreclosed, the lender then has to actually sell it. Sometimes this happens at an auction - which must be scheduled, publicized, and then hopefully have people attend with money. Many people are still not in the position to purchase a home, even at a foreclosure discount. I am envious of you, JT, if you live in an area of the country where you don't drive down the street and see these homes. This is a real issue - so real that as I mentioned, the lenders have an actual mathematical formula to determine the decrease in value of a home that has "foreclosure stigma."
Xin, you can't have it both ways. Either it takes a long time to foreclose and people should stay in their homes until evicted or we should speed up foreclosures so houses can pass on to permanent owners at lower prices. Which is it?
Suppose one business is buying a factory from another. It's supposed to make payments for 30 years, but the contract provides that it can quit making payments at any time if it gives the factory back.
Now suppose business conditions change, such that it makes business sense to give the factory back and quit making payments. Do you think it's not going to do so? If it's following the terms of the contract, I'd say it would be both legal and ethical. (In fact, it'd probably be a lapse of its fiduciary duty to its shareholders not to do so.)
Under the law in many states, that's what a mortgage amounts to: Pay for 30 years, or give the house to the bank.
What's really interesting to me is why people think it's different when it's a person sticking to the terms of the contract, versus when it's a business doing so. I wrote a post about it a while back called Don't Treat Businesses Like People.
Are actually worse procrastinators. You see, while I put off doing things, I eventually get them done. Before that, I get a lot of nothing done. People who don't procrastinate usually move from one task to the next without stopping to do nothing. They never get nothing done, whereas I always get nothing done FIRST.
We always pay bills promptly, no late fees here. Letting the govt USE the interest from the tax return is not an issue, is kinda our contribution to the fight against the federal debt. & then for it to be spent so unwisely & arrogantly just slays us, but we are TRYING to remain good citizens. Have to agree w/most the posters here (yes, we put off housework til the people are less than 1 hr away, the stack of ironing is 3 feet tall), but sometimes it's best in the end, b/c we try not to get upset @ our procrastinating hearts. & the guests don't show up or the ironing is not needed til...so why were we agitated?
Thanks for this interesting post! My newest dilemma is whether to start shopping at stores like Wal-Mart that are now offering local, organic produce
http://blog.greensherpa.com/index.php/personal-finance/produce-wars-wal-...
What's your take on this story?
Thanks for all of these interesting ideas and suggestions! My newest dilemma is whether to start shopping at stores like Wal-Mart that are now offering local and organic produce.
http://blog.greensherpa.com/index.php/personal-finance/produce-wars-wal-...
Whats your take on this story?
Fasting, if done properly, actually has many health benefits, including cleaning toxins out of your body. But don't think you can gorge yourself on McD's and All You Can Eat Buffets for a month, then do a fast and not pay for it. There is lots of good, reliable info out there - just do a little research first. Fasting will also give you a small glimpse into what it feels like to not be able to afford 3 meals a day.
PS - most of the list was ridiculous but I was worth reading for the 'free' laughs. :)
I always procrastinate. But I'll do my taxes ASAP (this year was in February) if I'm due a refund I file right away, otherwise I wait until April 15...
I agree with JT here. The faster these homes actually foreclose the faster the prices will go down. Those who are depleting their savings to stay in the homes they know they will ultimately lose are not helping themselves or the general market. Again, I think it's good that these homeowners are actually staying even if they cannot afford the mortgage anymore because they are hopefully keeping the properties in livable condition when it comes time to sell.
Not too badly with money, but when it comes to home improvement projects and cleaning I'm terrible! I also sometimes put off appointments I dread like going to the dentist.
I am a born procrastinator...I clean my house the morning that I am getting visitors and I am always late in paying my Gas Bill...last month it had been about 7 months since I paid it. I just kept putting it off. Its finally paid..IN FULL!
"It hurts because the banks have to increase mortgage rates (e.g. credit becomes more expensive) for those of us who would choose to use it responsibly. The responsible folks have actually be hurt twice by this."
#8, I'm not sure I understand this. Why would banks increase interest rates for you? Wouldn't they only increase interest rates for the irresponsible since their ability to pay has no effect on yours?
"Now, instead of letting the houses return to a reasonable level so those of us who are responsible and have been saving for a down payment for 6 years can buy at "real" prices, the gov't and the banks are trying to prop home prices up and keep people in houses they "own", even though they actually own no equity in those houses."
Apologies, but you're going to have to excuse my ignorance once again. It would seem to me that allowing people to default would be a good thing here, no? If we want affordable houses then I would assume that to mean lower prices; and one way to get lower prices would be to allow foreclosures to happen. Hmm, I must be missing something here because it would also appear to be the case that foreclosures are a good way to return housing back to realistic levels.
"In addition to what Guest #8 noted, foreclosures also affect neighboring property values. The lenders actually factor in foreclosure stigma when evaluating mortgage modifications. What do you think would happen to the value of your home if it was surrounded by boarded-up, foreclosed homes?"
#10, yeah, that would seem to be a problem. I guess I would have to ask why a house would be allowed to be surrounded by boarded up homes. Surely, there must be someone willing to live in those homes. Why can't the banks sell the homes at auction?
Thanks in advance for the response. I'm new to the United States and I'm learning a lot!
Housework and Christmas Cards. I do my taxes immediately because I use my return to finance my vacation.
I almost procrastinated answering this question too!
This may be strange but...
I find that when I have a presentation to do for work, it helps to think about it for a while, but not actually do it until one to two days before it is due. All the ideas I have been thinking about come together at the same time and I don't get writer's block!
The Amazon card will certainly get good use.
I definitely procrastinate on things especially related to money. I always request an extension for my taxes. I actually put off filing returns for four years. Not a good look. I also procrastinate with cleaning, organizing, and returning calls. A lot of it has to do with being monkey minded and feeling overwhelmed. I know it's not good. Le sigh.
I'm writing a musical this month. I should be working on it, but instead I'm writing this comment. That should tell you.
GC
The best advice for your friend is to seek out assistance from a local Legal Aid for more state-specific advice. Many states are enacting special mortgage crisis legislation that mandates things like mediation between the homeowner and the bank and also providing funds to legal agencies to assist.
A short sale may be the best solution, but he should still be careful about negotiating a good deal with the bank regarding the deficiency. The lender can forgive the deficiency, but he should still be cautious about how the bank will report this to the IRS; if this isn't addressed, they can and will report it as income.
He is doing the absolute right thing by staying put and banking those payments for now.