I Saw The Former Passed Away

Someone like me, paying his home dilligently for the last eleven years, getting it nearly paid off and with a payment I can afford...suddenly, today, people like me are fucking clowns according to Obama. I'm a drain on our economy because I'm hoarding my equity. God, I'm such a prick, aren't I? As a reward for my financial stewardship, I'll get to help pay to keep other people's heads above water, through tax credits and the costs of renegotiating.

Those who can't pay, who owe more than their value, who are very nearly about to be evicted, well, they're the heroes of this economy now. They are the worthy ones, worthy of being saved.

Here's a cute scenario -- Clayton and Monica walked away from their mortgage in February of 2006, some of the smarter, earlier evacuees, and after a mild bankruptcy which eliminated all those bothersome consumer debts and endless collections calls, this "fresh start" is really what they needed to get going again. Thankfully, their former debts have passed away. Now they've scrapped and saved and have a goodly pile of cash and are ready to buy another home. Bankruptcy? No problem! Now that they have skin in the game, we'll loan ya....maybe a high rate, but hey, isn't a "home" worth it? And existing homeowners are going to help them, too! by helping to fund their 2009 $15,000 tax credit for buying a new home! And! If their home value drops futher over the next few years, they'll have the rights to cram down, or have the federal goverment help renegotiate their private contracts! What relief.

You remember Barney Frank last summer? I vividly remember him on the floor describing Hope for Homeowners, how last summer's plan would shield 400,000 homeowners from foreclosure. To date, it has renegotiated a total of 25 mortgages.

What is the only possible outcome of staving off foreclosures? Artifically propped up home values, and who, exactly, benefits from that? It isn't buyers.