Thoughts on the mortgage relief bill?

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2008
Thoughts on the mortgage relief bill?
27
Wed, 02-18-2009 - 8:29pm

I'm curious how other members feel about Obama's mortgage relief proposal.


I have very mixed feelings about this.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-17-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 9:18am

Hi Ashley.

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2008
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 9:22am

Thanks for all the input on this...


I do see things differently now...

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2005
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 9:57am

I am excited about this bill as well.....I think it will eventually help the economy.

Jan
Avatar for meandmypea
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 11:26am

I simply do not understand why people like Rush are calling this plan for "losers." This is not a handout where the government is forgiving mortgages or giving you a free pass because you lost a job. No one's getting a free pass with this. This is only a refinancing opportunity. So what Rush was saying implies that anyone who has ever refinanced their mortgage a "loser." If you bought a house for $Eleventy billion dollars in 2006, you're still going to owe $Eleventy billion. The only difference is that you don't have to purposely default on your mortgage now to pay back your Eleventy billion at 5% as opposed to 6.25%.

Bridget




Bridget
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-07-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 12:20pm

Try not to regret your post.... The point of this board is support..which often comes with education.


And *I*, for one, found the post and replies interesting and educational.

Teresa
http://www.affordingpickles.blogspot.com

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-17-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 12:25pm
Here's my take on him.
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-07-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 12:27pm
*snicker*

Teresa
Making changes in 2009 for a healthier me




Teresa
http://www.affordingpickles.blogspot.com

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-05-2006
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 2:59pm

I'm conflicted about my own situation. Let me explain:

We bought our 2 bedroom apartment for 163,700 at the height of the housing boom (2005). We had been living with our parents for 2 years and struggling to save enough money to get out from under them. We were a young family, we wanted our own space. I didn't want to rent. I thought that owning was the dream and the rates were so low at the time. There was this subliminal message that everyone could buy a house! Why not us? I had an inheritance that I was using for the downpayment. I had 15,000 dollars that I put into this condo.

We went to our credit union and we were approved for 200,000 dollars! They looked at our income, they had our check stubs and tax returns. We thought we were doing everything right. We applied for a fixed rate loan, we knew that adjustables weren't the way to go even though our mortgage payment would have been cheaper. We had great credit and got a rate of 6.125. I had done the math and I thought we could afford a mortgage of around a thousand dollars. I didn't even take the full amount they approved us for. I knew we couldn't afford that!

We were young, we were stupid. We didn't know how much it cost to live. I didn't think about taxes and PMI and condo fees etc. I didn't know my electricity bill would be $200 dollars! The extra cost of living was unknowable to us.

So this bank got us into a mortgage for 1200 dollars on a net income of 420 dollars a week! I did make a small amount on the side. Enough we thought to pay a few bills and buy groceries. But what we found out pretty quickly after buying this home was that we didn't make enough money. We were going down fast.

We have held onto this place for 4 years. We have struggled and been close to going under a few times. We bought groceries on credit cards until we were maxed out.

So I have a few questions here. Yes, we were one of the dumb ones that bought a house we couldn't afford. But we didn't know we couldn't afford it. I was 25 years old and knew nothing about money. The bank approved us! The bank should know whether we could afford it or not! So is it our fault for not having the knowledge or the banks fault for giving us this loan. But it was our decision to get into this mortgage, so I'm not asking for a handout here. We've held on! We're almost there! And because we struggled so much and found out that without a higher income, we would never make it...we actually doubled our income in a year by switching careers. That alone is worth all the struggle we went through because that improved the quality of our life for the rest of our lives and we would have never pushed for that unless we had no other choice.

I don't know much about the mortgage plan yet and I agree that this money shouldn't be given to people who knowingly bought houses they couldn't afford, but what about those who were duped by the bank? Yes, I bought a house I couldn't afford, but I didn't knowingly do it. But I don't even think we qualify for the program right now because I don't think our mortgage is more than 38% of our income. Wasn't that one of the qualifications? And we're not behind on our mortgage anymore either, although we were 30 days behind for the whole of last year! But if I am able to take this help, should I?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-17-2003
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 3:13pm
You should absolutely explore this program!
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-29-2008
Thu, 02-19-2009 - 6:47pm

I agree with Carolyn...you are a legitimate candidate for relief.