i just got married, figured the best thing to do is to buy a house and start my life. so we bought a shot gun ranch for 210k. two bed, 1.5 bath. we bo th knew the house needed to be gutted. so we brought the house down to the studs and rebuilt the entire house. when buying the house we asked if we can take out more than what the house is selling for and unfortunatly we couldnt. so i said i would just put it on credit cards that i have which are about 7% interest. well 50k later and the housing market crashing like it did. im 55k underwater in the mortgage and 50k on credit cards. i can make my payments which isnt a problem.

what really hurts is seeing the government spending 700 billion dollars on the banks that caused this mess in the first place! why should they give the money to them who didnt care to begin with. they should really be looking at restructuring everyones mortgage. now only will that help people out by now being able to afford their house in tough times. But it will also help out the banks because their houses wont be sitting empty! but that is just my thinking.

everyone should keep a clear head and pull through this together.

What`s funny here is she can`t afford to walk away because she has enough elsewhere for them to come and take from her otherwise she`d be gone.

Paid 345K and is 25-100k behind with the same house across the street listed for 205k and it`s still not selling??? The way i do math that equals a 140k loss plus the closing costs to buy it plus realtor and other fees to sell it which about another 35k for a grand total loss of about 175k... Now if you look at the amortization schedule of that 30 yr loan you`ll see that for her to get to a balance owed of 205k (current value of home) it will be the year 2025... Figure in monthly taxes and insurance and her payment is about 3k a month. Depending on her tax bracket she probably needs to earn 4k a month just to pay out the 3k. Don`t let her fool you, she would walk away if she could!

We all make the beds we sleep in. No sympathy for those who havn`t learned to make the bed properly after all these years!

We moved to South Florida in 2005 because of my husband's job.  We were planning to rent an apartment, but they were quickly being converted to condos, and we were told we may not be able to rent for long.  Plus, we were told that if we didn't buy a home quickly, we would be priced out of the market.  So...  We panicked and bought a 30-year-old small home (zero lot lined) for $350K.  We put down 10% and have paid faithfully.  It is now worth about $260, give or take.  We have old, used furniture, one 18-year-old TV, and haven't gone on vacation in 8 years.  But, we have pristine credit, no car loans, and no credit card debt.  Because we are responsible and only buy what we really need, we are among those who won't get any mortgage relief.  That's what upsets me.  It seems like in this country, it's the lazy folks and the irresponsible/greedy folks who get a helping hand.  Those of us who try to do the right thing pay their bills.  Can't we do anything about this?  

I THINK SOMETHING EVERYONE HAS TO KEEP IN MIND IS THAT UNLESS YOU'RE MOVING TOMORROW AND CAN STILL AFFORD TO MAKE YOUR MORTGAGE PAYMENTS, YOU SHOULD RIDE IT OUT.  FROM A TAX STANDPOINT, IT JUST MAKES SENSE.  iT WILL COME BACK.  iT ALWAYS HAS.

I do feel sorry for some people but they signed the papers.They did have some idea of what they were getting into.When the housing market was going through the roof we were told to sell,make a big profit,and get a new over priced house. At the time we owed 170,000 on our home(4 bedroom,3 bath,on a golf course, inground,2400 sq.ft)I could not replace this home for what I owed,so we refied to a 15yr.fixed(did not pull any $ out)and will have it paid off before we retire.We have no bills.I know that if we ever had to sell we can get what we owe.I seen this coming afew years ago and knew that houses were over priced.You are so right Mrs.L.where is our reward for being responsible?

The only reward responsible citizens have is the pride they get knowing they are honoring their commitments made (for whatever that is worth).  For those of us that must sell due to illness, job loss, job transfer, etc.....it is coming at a price.  For ALL, the price of these bailouts won't be fully realized for years to come.   I have so much respect for those, like us, that are hanging in there as hard & frustrating as it can be.  Sometimes the hardest thing to do is the right thing.   We have seen friends and family lose their jobs, struggle to find jobs in a very tight market, and still try to honor their commitments, all while losing their piece of mind.  We haven't seen the government swoop in to help them like they are discussing with the auto industry or have done with the financial sector.   That is the most frustrating part of this whole mess!  No incentive to be fiscally responsible.

I empathise so much.I must really thank god that i am not in such a position.I really hope that things will change for the better soon.Its so hard for persons who have invested so much in their home and now its worth is reduced as well as job security is a thing of th past. hang in there.U can ride it out.The race is not for the swift but for those who endure.

ms. V

Some of these stories are so heartbreaking!!  Who is reading these posts that can do anything for those of us that are trying to do the right thing?  Mr President-Elect, I hope you can see what is going on in your country where you will be leading in a few short weeks.  Let's all use our common sense and put our greed behind us.  If we don't pull together soon, this country will go down in flames and there will be no one left to rescue us.  The whole world is watching us right now so let's lift our heads up and be the Americans we know we can be and get this behind us.  

You are right haven't hit bottom,I do feel for people that having hard times do to illness but the people that  live beyond their means are the ones I don't feel sorry for. They bought over priced homes  because "the jones " did.They never thought about the debt the jones had ,they just had to keep up with them.And if people thought that they would never lose their jobs,shame on them, NO ONE has a safe job,anyone could lose their job.The real problem is no one thought about the" what if".I wouldn't mind bailing out people if their hard time are caused by illness or even if hey lost their job,I don't want to bail out people the are living beyond their means and we all know someone like that because those are ones who will do it again if they got a fresh start

@Bleeding Heart, my payments are $2400 a month, which is below 25% of our income. Rent in the area is around $2000 a month and I'd have a hard time finding a place that would take 3 dogs! All signs point to stay.

I certainly don't speak for everyone in my situation, I have a good career and income. Through the attention given my story I've found there are people who are in bad shape and don't know what to do. The people you are seeing here are the ones who pay their bills and have good credit, they're not deadbeats. Anyone could walk away if they want to, I won't because that is not my style. At the end of the day my word and my honor are the only things that matter to me. I'm not looking for your sympathy but don't presume to know me.