Who's to blame???

I want to throw my two cents in on what the MSM is calling the foreclosure crisis. As a 3 time home owner I know how hard it is to save and sacrifice to provide a better life for your family.

The folks losing their homes now are renters who should never have entered into a mortgage contract. In the “olden” days, you could have the privilege of home ownership one of 3 ways. An FHA (first time buyer) mortgage, traditional mortgage underwriting (20% down) from your local bank and the VA loan. You had to have a good great credit record with a stable employment history. Once approved, the lender would let you know how much house you could buy, making sure the house payment was never more than 25% of your take-home pay. The lender was taking a chance on you and didn’t want to get stiffed. There was a time in this country when people would never finance a car, they paid cash and lived within their means.

When it no longer became a privilege, but a right, to own a home, creative lenders set up shop on every construction site and new housing development. Advertising 0 down, interest only or sub-prime ARM’s to lure the victims into signing a mortgage they couldn’t afford. Predatory lenders, maybe. But can’t we place the blame were it belongs, personal responsibility on part of the buyer.

In an effort to save the middle class we now have to bail these folks out and save them from themselves.