Mortgage Bankers Association Report: The Foreclosures Continue in California and the Nation

We custom built our California home in 2006. Our first Mortgage is at 982,000,this amount is what it cost to build our home. We do not have a second mortgage, although in 2008 we could have done like millions of other people did and pull out our equity to to pay for things we couldn't afford to pay cash with. We didn't, we left our equity there because our plan was to take the equity in 4 years when we retire to buy a home with cash. Well unfortunately the market took a huge turn, appraisers say our house is only worth around 600,000 according to the comps in the area. We are stuck like everyone else, with a mortgage rate that we can't even refinance at 7.25% We have never missed a payment of 7200.00 a month. Our mortgage was with Country Wide, now with Bank of America and nobody wants to help us at all to refinance to a lower interest rate. Everyone is walking from their mortgages, while we continue to be honest and pay the price with absolutely NO HELP! Somethings wrong with this system!

I don't see how your complaint is valid. Investments can rise or decline in value; yours has declined. I understand that you are frustrated that other undeserving parties and businesses are having their losses covered. They shouldn't have had their losses covered, and neither should you. Suppose your investment had paid off, and in four years the house was worth $1.5 million. What would you have said if prospective buyers said, "We should be able to buy your house for $950,000, because you only spent $982,000 on it when it was new, and now it is 4 years old"? Wherever there is a chance for a free profit, there is a chance for a loss. Many Americans have dutifully contributed money regularly to retirement plans with higher diversification and "less risk" than your investment and have suffered a similar decline of 30% or more. They/we won't have that value restored, even though the behavior was very responsible, as yours has been in keeping current on your mortgage. We should spend our energy protesting the unjust bailouts rather than trying to get an unjust bailout for ourselves.

Mark you missed the point. You are right that many people who invested responsibly were hurt by the credit market collapse. The “unjust bailout for ourselves” sounds like something an investment advisor would suggest. The people that were responsible for oversight let the nation down. They need to take responsibility for their actions. Nobody is asking for a hand out just a break. It is a win win situation. Litigation protesting misdirected bailouts only stimulates the legal system.

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