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As Market Cools, Home Buyers Seek a Way Out
The Wall Street Journal ^ | May 4, 2007; Page A1 | By MICHAEL CORKERY and RUTH SIMON

Posted on 05/04/2007 7:06:40 AM PDT by sportutegrl

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One of those buyers, Daphne Sewell, received three construction loans, totaling about $750,000, to buy three houses in Cape Coral and Lehigh Acres, Fla., in May 2005.

An administrative assistant in Broward County government, Ms. Sewell said she and her husband, a carpenter, earned $90,000 a year at the time of the deal and never should have qualified for their mortgages. She also claims a real-estate firm involved in the deal promised that it would find them tenants to rent out the houses. But the renters never materialized, her houses are vacant, and two of her loans are in foreclosure.

Buying 3 houses on a $90,000 salary is an investment, (and a bad one). You don't get your money back just because you can't make a profit. You win some, you lose some.

1 posted on 05/04/2007 7:06:42 AM PDT by sportutegrl
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To: sportutegrl

All I want is a guarantee that my investments will always increase in value, never depreciate, and that in the event of financial difficulties, I will not be held to account for any past stupidity. That’s all I want.


2 posted on 05/04/2007 7:09:02 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (Enoch Powell was right.)
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To: sportutegrl
An administrative assistant in Broward County government, Ms. Sewell said she and her husband, a carpenter, earned $90,000 a year at the time of the deal and never should have qualified for their mortgages.

What a hypocrite. Why didn't they complain about qualifying when she and her husband were approved for the deal?

3 posted on 05/04/2007 7:13:06 AM PDT by varon (Allegiance to the constitution, always. Allegiance to a political party, never.)
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To: sportutegrl

rampant speculation generally preceeds a market downturn.

When the pool secretary is buying nasdaq computer stocks online on margin, it’s time to sell short.


4 posted on 05/04/2007 7:14:12 AM PDT by 1Old Pro
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To: varon

She’s the kind who would sue a casino for not stopping her from placing a wager. ;)


5 posted on 05/04/2007 7:14:41 AM PDT by Mr. Jeeves ("Wise men don't need to debate; men who need to debate are not wise." -- Tao Te Ching)
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To: sportutegrl
Even as many of the new buildings are completed, buyers are filing lawsuits claiming they were duped into purchases they couldn't afford

It isn't the builders fault if you were too stupid to read the contract, or to get someone else to read it for you if you couldn't understand it.

6 posted on 05/04/2007 7:15:18 AM PDT by MEGoody (Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.)
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To: sportutegrl

“Buying 3 houses on a $90,000 salary is an investment,...”

BWAAHAAHAAHAA@!

AND she’s a government employee. What a moron. Lehigh Acres?

BWAAHAAHAAHAA@!


7 posted on 05/04/2007 7:17:15 AM PDT by poobear
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To: varon

Chuckie Schumer will bail her out.


8 posted on 05/04/2007 7:17:21 AM PDT by NonValueAdded ("The arrogance of ignorance is astounding" NVA 4/22/07)
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To: varon
Why didn't they complain about qualifying when she and her husband were approved for the deal?

A better question is, why did they even apply for three mortgages? If they did it as an investment, they should have known that investments sometimes go bad. Of course, liberals never want to accept responsibility for their bad decisions. It is always someone else's fault.

9 posted on 05/04/2007 7:17:49 AM PDT by MEGoody (Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.)
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To: MEGoody

The “no consequences” generation buys homes.


10 posted on 05/04/2007 7:20:12 AM PDT by JoeSixPack1
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To: ClearCase_guy
All I want is a guarantee that my investments will always increase in value, never depreciate, and that in the event of financial difficulties, I will not be held to account for any past stupidity. That’s all I want.

You have just perfectly characterized exactly what sizable majorities of the American population (and electorate) want ensured for them by their government...sometimes on different topics than this, but the exact same concepts.

11 posted on 05/04/2007 7:20:25 AM PDT by Scott from the Left Coast
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To: sportutegrl

Three mortgages that she had no chance of paying back.

Sounds like a predatory borrower to me.

Maybe we should pass a law against predatory borrowing!


12 posted on 05/04/2007 7:21:52 AM PDT by oblomov
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To: sportutegrl

I guess these articles are supposed to make us feel symphathetic towards these idiotic homebuyers. I don’t feel sorry for some fool that makes $90,000/year and buys three houses.


13 posted on 05/04/2007 7:22:04 AM PDT by caver (Yes, I did crawl out of a hole in the ground.)
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To: sportutegrl

14 posted on 05/04/2007 7:26:49 AM PDT by oblomov
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To: NonValueAdded

I think that program will only be for owner occupied homes.


15 posted on 05/04/2007 7:31:18 AM PDT by Moonman62 (The issue of whether cheap labor makes America great should have been settled by the Civil War.)
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To: sportutegrl
But a wave of building helped fuel the run-up in housing prices during the real-estate boom, especially in Florida and California.

Hmmm, I thought more supply meant lower prices. OTOH, I remember looking at MLS during that time and there was almost nothing for sale. Now there is ten times that amount.

16 posted on 05/04/2007 7:34:08 AM PDT by Moonman62 (The issue of whether cheap labor makes America great should have been settled by the Civil War.)
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To: sportutegrl
So property and land in FL and CA are dropping in value as speculators dry up?

Maybe some FReeper historians can help me here.

AS I read things from the 20s, FL property was a very hot speculative ‘investment’ - and as the economy slowed, the land market fell apart, forcing many to cash in stocks.

This land collapse in turn was the genesis of the stock market collapse or at least a harbinger. Comments?

17 posted on 05/04/2007 8:32:15 AM PDT by ASOC (Yeah, well, maybe - but can you *prove* it?)
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To: JoeSixPack1

And the libs in Congress are exposing the continuing the “no consequences” mindset -

Shumer wants to bail out folks who can’t pay their mortgages with OUR MONEY.

It’s just a foreign concept to them that those who make the decisions should reap the consequences (or rewards) for those decisions.


18 posted on 05/04/2007 8:37:50 AM PDT by MrB (You can't reason people out of a position that they didn't use reason to get into in the first place)
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To: caver

What would be interesting to see if these borrowers told the truth on their respective loan applications in regards to if the properties were owner occupied or non-owner occupied. It would also be interesting to see if the loan applications acknowledged the other properties they were trying to buy simultaneously. This is where the real fraud is. Most of these idiots who buy multiple properties actually gave two thoughts to actually having to repay these loans to begin with. The MO was to buy these properties and sell them the same day they officially purchased these homes for a huge profit. Now that property values are finally returning to mean and sanity is making a comeback, these idiots want to bail out. I have no sympathy for these people, they are not victims. You signed the contract, pay up.


19 posted on 05/04/2007 8:41:03 AM PDT by Subsonic22
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To: ClearCase_guy

I know of this bridge if you’re interested! ;-)


20 posted on 05/04/2007 8:42:43 AM PDT by Frapster (Don't mind me - I'm distracted by the pretty lights.)
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