Friday, February 20, 2009

Bail Out This

The DNC did me a favor. Now that I am no longer a member of the Democratic party, my blinders have fallen off and I see more clearly. Rick Santalli's rant got me thinking. HERE

No, I don't want to pay for my neighbor's 2nd bathroom, summer vacation or flat screen TV. Nor do I want to bail out their mortgage if they overspent their monthly budget on cell phones, clothes from Saks, dining out and getting their nails done. And Peloisi's trip to Italy on the government's dime sickens me.

In the last two years I've lost my job, my health insurance, paid egregious prices for heating oil and gas, seen my antiques business dwindle away to nothing and now I'm dealing with Madoff stealing my husband's pension. But, we are making it. Granted, it's close, but we eat well, don't buy anything we absolutely do not need and, when we do, it's second hand or factory refurbished. I do my own wallpapering, painting, don't have a dishwasher and our food is homemade, even the bread. In short, we struggle, but we are making it. And, I refuse to shop at Wal-Mart.

I worked through the mortgage debacle and saw many people make a lot of money. And, it appears they are keeping it, because neither Realtors, mortgage brokers, underwriters nor banks are being held accountable. Who is? You and me. For something that we didn't fall for nor are a part of.

I'd really like to see what criteria will be used to decide which people will be helped out with their mortgages. I'm all for helping those who help themselves and aren't exploiting the same failed rules that got us here. However, if you feel you need a vacation, an iPod, a landscaper, cellphones and Coach pocketbooks, you shouldn't qualify for a bailout. And I certainly don't want to pay for your extravagant lifestyle.

And, by the way, what is wrong with renting?

9 comments:

Alessandro Machi said...

Cell Phones can actually be cheaper than a land line these days, especially if you don't have to pay a monthly minimum and just use the cell phone for emergencies.

If banks are offering one percent interest on savings accounts, and people are skittish about investing in the stock market, then that leaves real estate as the one place to put one's money.

Lets leave the multiple home owner out of this and focus on the single home owner.

The single home owner who was mathematically shown that they would pay no more for the first five years by buying a home versus renting, and could then walk away with a profit if they had to rent again, should not be scorned for doing what the bankers were showing was the logical thing to do.

Rather, lets focus on the CRAZY overnight jump in the mortgage payment that caused people to INSTANTLY give up on even trying to make their home payments.

A more logical plan would have been to have a slowly accelerating monthly payment that kicked in in five years. This would have bought the homeowner time to sell their home, all the while making their monthly mortgage payment.

That would have softened the economic roller coaster and resulted in less highs and less lows overall.

Cyn said...

Respectfully disagree, Alessandro. Housing prices were inflated to make these loans and it's the real estate market, appraisers, banks, etc. who sold that "you can refinance your home in 5 years when the rate goes up as you will then have equity" that is the centerpiece of this whole mess. The homes weren't worth the mortgage in the first place. Not to mention the thousands of dollars it takes to refinance.

Cyn said...

And it wasn't a crazy overnight jump. Mortgagors knew the price would jump in 5 years.

Shainzona said...

DJF....did you do any research on health insurance aftr you lost yours? My brother (my twin!) just got notified that he will no longer be able to pay for his work-related health insurance (not enough people willing to pay, so everybody loses) and I don't have a clue as to what to tell him to do.

I will start doing my own research, of course, but thought maybe some of my internet friends might steer me in some research directions. (He's from Michigan).

Thank you - for reading this, at the very least.

Shainzona

Cyn said...

Shainzona, although I did research in NY (Healthy NY is the only plan I can afford), I'm not sure about Michigan.

I did a quick search and found these links, which may be of some help:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Affordable-Health-Insurance-in-Michigan&id=435908

http://www.hap.org/solo/

When I was doing my research, I found some helpful tips on NPR radio. I found plans I never knew existed.

I hope this helps. If I come across any more info, I will email it to you. Good luck to your twin! (that's so cool!)

Shainzona said...

Thank you, DJF! You went way beyond my expectations and have now put me on the road to research!

commoncents said...

Great post!!

Would you like a Link Exchange with our new blog COMMON CENTS where we blog about the issues of the day???

http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com

Greenconsciousness said...

I would love to rent - no $4,000.00 property taxes, no insurance rip offs, no landscape chores,and no three thousand dollars of repairs. Most of all, no evictions of drug dependent cocaine abusing renters who children are pregnant at 15 years of age, whose dogs defecate in my rental unit. Renters who decide to stay without paying rent for the 3 months it takes to evict them. If I could sell I would not have to pay eviction filing fees, no paying their water bills, no moving their furniture for $600 dollars and storing their property as mandated by WI law at my expense. Garnish their wages you say? For a two hundred dollar plus filing fee I can do that. Then they will file a hardship claim and the court will probably rule that they cannot afford to pay.

Thus I am moved into a tax sale of the property we worked our whole life to buy because we cannot pay the taxes.

Yes, I would love to sell this $167,000. home and get out from this $110,000.00 mortgage and have money to pay for my mother's nursing home. But no one is buying except for below the cost of the mortgage or for not enough to keep her in care.

Having said all that, I totally understand where you are at emotionally and financially. But working class people are in this together. It is the predatory rich and their credit economy that is the enemy. We have become an exploitative oligarchy. Working class unions are corrupted and working for the bosses. Immigrant labor is used to bust up working class wage and benefit gains and the union is fighting e-verify citizenship in Court against the interests of citizen workers. US debt will destroy social security and Medicare. The rich do not need these institutions. The credit and wall street economy does not benefit workers. Wall st, insurance, medical, church industry feed off of us. Regulatory agencies are staffed by those who work for the industries they are supposed to regulate. Hollywood has moved into the shameless exploitation of children as they have exploited women. The police have become the enemy. The prisons are filled with those who cannot buy justice.

Neither of the two political parties represent working people.

Hopelessness and helpless we keep waiting for the privileged to save us. The task now is to really define the oppressor. Know your enemy -- Know your class comrades. This is the first task. And it is hard. Even with feminists. We have to sort out those who say they are with us just to exploit us from those with whom we share economic survival interests.

Whatever... I am with you.

commoncents said...

Great post!

Would you like a Link Exchange with COMMON CENTS a blog where we blog about the issues of the day??

http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com