Foreclosure Resolution
After reading about the foreclosure crisis and my parents almost becoming a victim of said crisis, I feel inclined to address the issue and support a resolution. Unfortunately, foreclosure has swept throughout the United States. Families with varying incomes have become homeless overnight. Though mainly less affluent families have been affected by foreclosure, there has been a significant number of middle-class families also forced to face the realities of foreclosure. The government has debated many and attempted a couple of options for reducing the number of foreclosures. One trial, The Administration's Home Affordable Modification Program, otherwise known as HAMP, was unsuccessful. Despite the fact that it modified loans for fifty thousand, more than 300,000 properties were still foreclosed after HAMP went into effect in early 2009. [i] The most recent plan, Making Home Affordable (MHA), has left numerous Americans confused and worried because they do not qualify for it or the “new” mortgages from the plan would be putting the families even closer to foreclosure than their current mortgage. [ii] Nothing thus far is working. What, then, should Uncle Sam do about the foreclosure crisis?
Taking into account past attempts and failures, I propose we implement a plan where homeowners are allowed to pay the interest only on their loans or interest plus a portion of the expected monthly principal while enduring hardships. These hardships could be defined as loss of employment, salary reduction, loss of spouse or divorce, and unexpected medical expenses. Once an individual or family is burdened with a hardship, they may contact the bank at which they borrowed their mortgage, file the necessary pape...
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...r houses in that class will be better maintained.
My proposal for the foreclosure crisis is to help homeowners dealing with hardships by allowing them to pay the interest or interest and a portion of the principle on their mortgages. This simple solution will allow a large portion of Americans to qualify. In the end, investors will receive their loan back in full, the values of homes will level off or rise, the economy will stabilize due to a steady improvement in the housing market, and the foreclosure crisis will come closer to rehabilitation.
Endnotes:
Works Cited
[i] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-taylor/wheres-the-plan-on-forecl_b_401935.html
[ii] http://www.nbcdfw.com/around-town/real-estate/Federal-Program-to-Prevent-Foreclosure-Creates-Confusion-70326242.html
[iii] http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/03/reducing_foreclosures.html
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