Something For Nothing

I've always known that 'standard' was the way to go with a mortgage. All the gimmicky come-ons of low monthly payments (usually meaning you're paying only the interest and no principle for x amount of years), balloon payments. Whoever thought that was a good idea deserves a swift kick in the pants... of course, the lenders though it was a great idea--lots of money for them, unless when the poor sap who got the loan realized that the balloon at the end of the rainbow would burst on them leaving them with payments they couldn't afford, and then the lender is left with a defaulted loan and a house that they probably couldn't resell for the inflated value they granted the loan for in the first place.

I have a friend whose house is in foreclosure. They are fighting the bank in court. They believe deceptive lending practices were involved. They may win. It's still being fought so I don't know. The thing is lots of folks are doing just that--fighting the banks in court over the foreclosures. Now deceptive or not, I knew my friend's mortgage deal sucked when she told me about it. I said, don't do that, you'll regret it... she never listens. This wasn't the first time. I just shake my head and stand back and watch the fall-out. What can I do? I can't make the decisions for her and her husband. It's their business. But I have to say that she and all the rest of the folks fighting in court over the foreclosures should have known it was too good to be true. Should have stopped and thought hard about it.

If my friend wins--as many have in similar cases--I can't help but feel a bit angry. My husband and I pay our mortgage. It's not fun. We'd be pretty darned rich if we didn't have a mortgage to pay. We didn't get stupid and opt for a 'fancy--easy' loan. A standard 30-year fixed suited us just fine thank you very much. Still... my friend and others like her may get their houses free and clear while my husband and I continue to pay our monthly mortgage. I don't think that's quite fair.

Should banks be allowed to practice stupid lending practices? No--and I call them 'stupid' rather than deceptive because just about anyone who is thinking clearly and has an ounce of brains can see what those mortgages are about, they just don't want to. However, while banks should be stopped from offering rediculous mortgages to people they know will never be able to afford them, those that take them should have to own up to the responsibility of their own actions.

I remember a time when 'ignorance' was no excuse. Now it's a common complaint. Who doesn't want the easy money many of those stupid loans offer? We're a world of people wanting something for nothing, and not wanting to pay the price when we find out nothing is free.