ABC News on the &quot;home wreckers&quot; and &quot;the American nightmare&quot;

March 27, 2007

ABC News on the "home wreckers" and "the American nightmare"

Stupid is as stupid does...

50 comments:

Anonymous said...: Something is not right with this story.

Their montly cost increased from $740 to $870 and they are going to foreclose? Over an extra $130 a month? Did these people not get any raises over the past 6 years? Do they not have $130 worth of spending they can cut out like oh I dunno...don't get a car wash every week, don't get your nails done, don't go to Starbucks anymore, the kids don't play baseball this year....$130 dollars for Christ's sake is not that hard to make up every month. Hell get a second job making $6 an hour and work 5 hours a week if you have to.

I can see getting fucked if your mortgage jumps from $1200 to $2800...yeah that's a little tough to handle for anyone. But from $740 to $870 and you're foreclosing? Sorry, I just don't buy it.; March 27, 2007 10:14 PM
Anonymous said...: -
-
"They're losing a home they never could afford in the first place."

Well, they haven't lost anything then, have they? No money down. The builder got paid, the lender got paid, the realtwhore® got paid, whether they pay the house off, or not. Foreclosures are good for the economy. They should just, sniff, give them the, sniff, house, sniff, because they've lost so much. Oh, boo hoo hoo.; March 27, 2007 10:17 PM
Anonymous said...: I don't know why it's so difficult for some people to understand. If I've been driving a Ford Pinto all my life, I can't go to a Ferrari dealer, get a financing with with $1 down, and expect to come out with a brand new Modena F1. The absurd price hasn't changed, even though the dealer just asked for $1 down payment.

We should make billboards around the country saying: "IF YOU ARE POOR, DON'T EXPECT TO LIVE LIKE THE RICH."; March 27, 2007 10:26 PM
Anonymous said...: Struggling with a 100K mortgage and a $870 monthly payment? I spend more on parking than that white trash family spends on their shit box. Holy shit that's funny. Wife is hot though, she should definitely be a stripper and make some cash.; March 27, 2007 10:36 PM
The Thinker said...: Mort raises an excellent point. Why are the homeowners the victims. They lie about their income, get a zero-down loan, make no payments and it takes the bank 6 months to get them the hell out of the house they didn't pay for! These people are not the victims, they are the perpetrators.; March 27, 2007 10:37 PM
MissTrade said...: BZH going down tonite also

http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2007/03/27/0327bizbeazer.html; March 27, 2007 10:38 PM
Anonymous said...: I don't know why it's so difficult for some people to understand. If I've been driving a Ford Pinto all my life, I can't go to a Ferrari dealer, get a financing with with $1 down,

But the house cost $100K....this was the Pinto they were buying and they still managed to fuck up.; March 27, 2007 10:41 PM
Anonymous said...: Wow! These poor inbred white trash dumshoots - we gotta save em. No raise at Mickeydee's for head breadearner? These fools should be on disability for being retarted. Christ, theyre breeding future fools too. I can see the scenerio - You can get a 30 year fixed at 8% or you can get an ARM and save $25.00 a month! That's extra cheetos and beer for the big screen. Sign me up says Jethro and Jethrine.; March 27, 2007 10:57 PM
Anonymous said...: Where did these people live before they bought the house if they can't afford $870? Are rents so low in NC that they paid significantly less than that before they bought??? I'd love to know if she works. It would kill me that she's moaning and groaning if she doesn't even have 1 job.; March 27, 2007 11:02 PM
Anonymous said...: Maybe they met at the local homeless shelter and got gubment assistance to buy their american dream.; March 27, 2007 11:07 PM
Anonymous said...: The majority of Americans are just like these people. Too dumb and stupid to read the fine print.

The women, although a little frumpy, can still make some money. I hear they can command a good price in the harems of Saudi Arabia. I also hear women like this can make a good living in the sex clubs of Tel Aviv.; March 27, 2007 11:27 PM
Anonymous said...: My cable bill is $100/month.
Cell Phones(2)..$105
Home Phone...$27
Starbucks...$32

If my mortgage goes up by $130, I guess I'll give it back to the bank.
Have a beer, Don't cost nothin.; March 27, 2007 11:39 PM
Anonymous said...: hahaha 130 extra?!?!

Time Travel is real - go to a red state!

Dude you cant live in a car in CA for 870 a month; March 27, 2007 11:57 PM
Out at the peak said...: I wish I only had to pay $870 a month to rent or buy a SFH around here. This family could never survive in California.; March 28, 2007 12:52 AM
Anonymous said...: Didn't they have a huge TV in their living room?? Why would you have such a big TV if you can't afford the mortgage payments???; March 28, 2007 1:11 AM
Anonymous said...: There better not be a government bail out for these idiots but .. sniff sniff .. I can smell one on the wind.; March 28, 2007 1:36 AM
Anonymous said...: I propose a new, simple law: you must cough up a minimum 20% down payment in order to buy a house in the USA. Can't do it? Tough shit - enjoy your rental!; March 28, 2007 2:12 AM
tmaioli said...: "The Tingly's" Come on is that some joke, That's the first order of biz, change that name.; March 28, 2007 2:17 AM
tmaioli said...: Take the house but I'll be damned if you take away the Starbucks.; March 28, 2007 2:19 AM
tmaioli said...: Only a dollar down? Well I'll take 5, I was going to buy some lotto tickets, but this sounds so much better. After all prices never go down.; March 28, 2007 2:23 AM
Anonymous said...: It sounds like maybe the 10 - 15K in negative equity is really the down payment that they (and all their neighbors) SHOULD have put down on those houses.

Oh, along with the $ 1.00 bill and the fogged mirror.; March 28, 2007 2:34 AM
Anonymous said...: "Where did these people live before they bought the house if they can't afford $870? Are rents so low in NC that they paid significantly less than that before they bought"

Yes, a person of mine had lived in a 2 bdrm (he made one of them into a home office) outside of Asheville for $400-450/month rent during the late 90s. His savings rate, down there, was unheard of compared to when he lived in the northeast (NJ, I believe) when much of his earnings went into housing and expenses.; March 28, 2007 2:34 AM
Anonymous said...: What a bunch of losers! They would have to pay at least $870 per month in rent to live somewhere. Do these fools even have 1 job between them?

Also, the two wives were pretty cute. Notice they did all the talking. Their dumbfuck loser husbands just stand there, not even knowing that they are being made to look like ABSOLUTE LOSERS on national television.

Looks like if you can talk OR you have a job you can get a pretty good lookin wife in North Carolina. Only downside is that your wife yells out "Jeff Gordon" during lovemaking.; March 28, 2007 2:36 AM
Markus Arelius said...: Now can we all agree that American high schools are some of the worst in the world?

Jesus Christ, most of this is down to the fact that average Americans who graduate high school can't even balance a checkbook let alone figure out mortgage amortizations and the costs associated with utilizing credit cards.

Average Americans have to be the most financially inept people on the planet.

Part of this indeed middle-class to poor people trying to live like the rich.

But the biggest gaff is caused by a failure to understand fundamental math and its application to personal finance decisions.

I knew gym and art classes were largely cut from most high school programs. But what the hell happened to the "personal finance" class that used to be offered to juniors and seniors?; March 28, 2007 4:21 AM
Anonymous said...: Typical for the MSM. They pick a story that no one can relate to. An adjustable rate that adds $130 a month to their mortgage? Big deal. ABC needs to do a California piece:

1. Find a no frills neighborhood that no one can be accused of being to poor to live in. Where it couldn't be thought that someone is trying to live beyond their means... How about a 3 bedroom 1 bath, 1150 s.f. starter in Compton for $360K. 0 down.

2. Show how when they bought, they had a negative am loan with a $1400 Interest+Taxes+Insurance payment.

3. Show that they now owe $380K on a house that will be lucky to appraise for that amount... can't refi into something new.

4. Show that the new amount is now fully amoritized for the remaining 27 years for a $3000 PITI.

5. Show that if lending standards change (as I hope they will). The only people that will be able to buy this Compton home will have to have at least $19K (5% down) and be able to (really) qualify for a $361K mortgage. I'm guessing that the income needed to qualify would be in the $75K per year range... so 19K down and 75K per year to live in wreck of a house in Compton!; March 28, 2007 4:31 AM
Anonymous said...: They can't afford 870 a month? Please. Someone needs to get out on the street and peddle some ass.

In Los Angeles we have people paying 4000 a month.

On another note. I'm still not seeing, "How could this happen here. This is the United States of America."

Things aren't that bad yet. If they're making a big deal over a few losers just wait until the REAL bubble pop happens.; March 28, 2007 6:36 AM
Anonymous said...: They probably paid 100k but as the house gained value, they took out Home Equity Loans to pay for boats and hair extensions.

So now they have like what, a 350,000 dollar loan on a 300,000 dollar house and the slide is just beginning.; March 28, 2007 6:38 AM
Anonymous said...: ohhhhhh boy.

what's gonna happen when it starts to hit the expensive areas.

I'll be willing to bet that there are people in 500k places that wouldn't be able to come up with an extra 130/month. All those big city 1br condos full of $30k millionaires.; March 28, 2007 6:57 AM
Anonymous said...: Mark and Lisa Tingly?

I get Tingly just looking at that wench.

I noticed they weren't lacking for big televisions and, ahem, ceiling fans.

It's a damn shame.; March 28, 2007 8:21 AM
Anonymous said...: "But what the hell happened to the "personal finance" class that used to be offered to juniors and seniors?"

they may not know how to manage there finances but they know why little johnny has two mommies.

priorities man.; March 28, 2007 11:57 AM
Anonymous said...: I agree, something is wrong with this story. I notice that despite not having a garage, ABC was careful not to show the homeowners' cars.

Why? My guess is they have brand new cars with $600/month car payments. If viewers were to see two shiny cars it would be more difficult to generate sympathy for their $120 increase in mortgage payment.

I'd also be curious to know whether they smoke. I'm not a smoker but i've seen the price of cigarettes.

Finally, I agree with the commenter who recommended that one of these people simply get a part-time job to earn the extra $120.; March 28, 2007 2:38 PM
Anonymous said...: Mort raises an excellent point. Why are the homeowners the victims. They lie about their income, get a zero-down loan, make no payments and it takes the bank 6 months to get them the hell out of the house they didn't pay for! These people are not the victims, they are the perpetrators.

Like most Americans, they entered into 'fat and happy' denial mode, stuffing their fat faces with McBurgers while buying their Japanese electronic gadgets and Chinese toys.

Everyone just assumed that things would work out, completely throwing logic and common sense out the window (when the rules of common-sense lending truly WERE thrown out the window! "No job? Bad credit? No problem!")

Now that common sense has kicked in with a vengeance, people are starting to realize they were victims of their own wants and desire, driven by their own greed... No surprise that the fishes takes the worm bait.

All I want is for people to get the hell out of houses they never could afford in the first place (and got into, only because of a liar loan).

I'm so pissed that greedy members of the REIC were allowed to manipulate the market for their OWN personal gain for 5 years, leaving it devastated in the aftermath.

The real estate market is corrupt to it's core, from Coast to Coast. Who's to blame? As they say, the fish stinks from the head down: all this blossomed and flourished under Bush's admin. He was too busy saving the world for democracy to notice how rampant unregulated greed ruined the American Dream for those like me who have avoided instant gratification (getting a college degree, getting a career started and saving up for a down-payment, etc).; March 28, 2007 3:07 PM
Anonymous said...: It's ok, they made it! Even if they forclose and go bankrupt, they still at one point in their lives made the title of "homeowner." So crack a nice cold bud light and enyoy.

I wonder where the own a home experts (pro buyer) are in a situation like this? I think a little more expert wisdom would be helpful at this point.; March 28, 2007 3:48 PM
Anonymous said...: "I can see getting fucked if your mortgage jumps from $1200 to $2800...yeah that's a little tough to handle for anyone. But from $740 to $870 and you're foreclosing? Sorry, I just don't buy it. "

It just goes to show you how POOR most people are. Just 1 pay check away from the poor house.

IMO, so sad, TOO BAD!! The price for being stupid should be very high. Otherwise, NO ONE WILL LEARN.; March 28, 2007 3:49 PM
Anonymous said...: I wonder if they are living in that development where 20% of the homes have entered foreclosure.

And, while I don't feel too bad for these people, sure as shit, I'll bet that this was the direct result of predatory lending.; March 28, 2007 4:06 PM
Blogger said...: I think a lot of you guys have become desensitized to to home prices by constantly seeing the Northeast and West coast numbers. Homes and incomes in NC are dirt cheap in comparison. Go out to realtor.com and look before jumping to beat these folks down...; March 28, 2007 5:39 PM
Blogger said...: Consider this too: The Charlotte area of NC is considered to be a huge part of their economic strength, so that stuff happening there should clue you in just how bad this really is...; March 28, 2007 5:44 PM
Anonymous said...: There is a possible new U.S. catchphrase that cropped up from that video:

A "Peanut butter & Jelly mortgage"!

Wonder how soon we'll be saying that in the UK?; March 28, 2007 5:48 PM
Anonymous said...: Patchy Patches makes a good point. Most of us live in insanely priced areas where $100,000 buys you a closet.

But in a lot of the country $100K will still buy you a house. Stop being the typical California arrogant twats for a second.; March 28, 2007 6:19 PM
Anonymous said...: Wait a second, this is impossible, Suzanne researched it, and now they are 15-20k neg equity? Wait 6 months, come to OC, the king of the sub-prime lenders and borrowers, and you will see 200-400 neg equity.; March 28, 2007 8:53 PM
Anonymous said...: Sorry, but an extra $130.00 a month puts you into forclosure then you are the biggest twat of them all. That's $4.30 a day, it could be the difference between driving the HELOC'd gas guzzler they probably have or driving something economical - or get rid of cable! There is no excuse no matter where you live.; March 28, 2007 8:59 PM
Anonymous said...: "Average Americans have to be the most financially inept people on the planet.

Part of this indeed middle-class to poor people trying to live like the rich."

Bingo. I couldn't agree more with those 2 comments more than anything i have read on Keith's patricks or bens blogs.

Signed SmugImmigrant; March 28, 2007 9:17 PM
Anonymous said...: "I get Tingly just looking at that wench."

Agreed, and being an American chick she ought to know how to get at LEAST $130/month without even putting out.; March 28, 2007 10:06 PM
Anonymous said...: "Homes and incomes in NC are dirt cheap in comparison."

I've already heard plenty of stories about the equity locusts swarming out there to destroy that as well.; March 28, 2007 10:08 PM
Anonymous said...: hahaha 130 extra?!?!

Time Travel is real - go to a red state!

Dude you cant live in a car in CA for 870 a month

March 27, 2007 10:57 PM
-----------------------------------

Hahahaha! True, very true.; March 28, 2007 11:11 PM
Anonymous said...: They bought the house because they:

"Reckon they ken buys a house without havin to replace them rubber wheels or without worry of a turnater wreckin theirs them house, all fer no munny down, so theys can buy one of them pretty tellervision picture sets"; March 28, 2007 11:23 PM
Chris said...: I used to work at a chemical plant in Wisconsin, and 1-2 times a year I would go to Charlotte for various training courses. One neighborhood would be dirt cheap, and the next would be filthy rich.

Something doesn't sit right here though. They have 2 kids who are probably old enough to go to school, so she doesn't need to be a stay-at-home mom. (There's no way she is working at that level of mortgage payment.) At least the guy borrowed a dress shirt and tie from his boss to look presentable. They actually don't seem that dumb. The only logical thing I can think of is that the guy has trouble holding down a steady job. Around Charlotte that can certainly happen.; March 29, 2007 3:15 AM
Anonymous said...: OK all you u KA-LEE-FO-R-NIGH-A sophisticated, eduacted, nuanced liberals....are you implying nobody in your state was stupid enough to buy more than they could afford?

And you Democrat anti-American swine wonder why you lose every presidential election.; March 29, 2007 3:54 PM
Anonymous said...: He/she could get a job as a tour guide for Deliverance River Raft Tours. Or maybe at the local banjo factory. Or at the local rendering plant.; March 29, 2007 5:14 PM
Anonymous said...: Wow. You guys live in expensive neighborhoods. Just for grins I picked up a copy of the Green Bay Press Gazette.

1 BR upper, water & a/c included $390 month.

2 br heat/watter, appll, blinds $450 no pets.

1 and 2 bdrm duplex style $355 and $405.

And on and on it goes for page after page. There is one catch though. About a third of the jobs here are minimum wage. Your take home pay after taxes may not even be $800.; March 29, 2007 5:33 PM