Every Thursday, SoCal Connected will be featuring your reactions, thoughts and commentary on the previous week’s show. We’re calling the segment "The Water Cooler" in homage to that gathering place in every workplace, office and school where people steal a few moments out from a busy day in order to discuss the most pressing question of our time - namely, what they watched on TV (or TiVo) last night.
(Or in the case of our virtual water cooler: Discuss what they watched on SoCal Connected!)
To get things started, we thought we would ask two questions we know have been on everyone's minds the last few months:
How is the economic downturn affecting you? Are you afraid of losing your home?
Use the comments below to share your thoughts and responses to those questions, and we’ll feature some of your comments on the Thursday, October 2nd show. Please make sure to use leave us a valid email address so that we can verify your identity. Your comment WILL NOT air if we can't comment you, so leave SUNSTUD37 in chat where he belongs and use your real email; we promise to keep it a secret!
(Or in the case of our virtual water cooler: Discuss what they watched on SoCal Connected!)
To get things started, we thought we would ask two questions we know have been on everyone's minds the last few months:
How is the economic downturn affecting you? Are you afraid of losing your home?
Use the comments below to share your thoughts and responses to those questions, and we’ll feature some of your comments on the Thursday, October 2nd show. Please make sure to use leave us a valid email address so that we can verify your identity. Your comment WILL NOT air if we can't comment you, so leave SUNSTUD37 in chat where he belongs and use your real email; we promise to keep it a secret!
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My brother and his wife bought their condo at the height of the market in a Northern California suburb. Their house has depreciated by nearly 100,000 dollars and they're falling behind on their mortgage payments. They were told by a friend that, because there are so many foreclosures, they could stop paying their mortgage for up to a year before the bank takes notice and seizes their home. Is that true?
Throughout the 80's and 90's, I watched those at work(USPS)continue to refinance their homes and spend money on new cars and other consumer goods, expensive vacations. I never refinanced, continuing to pay 9% as they laughed at me and my beat-up car. I finally paid off my home in 2004 and have no credit debt. I have always tried to live beneath my means, knowing some disaster would occur. Having traveled to many countries, I know the suffering that others live under because of our incessant demand for cheap oil and cheap bananas(consumer goods).
We have to change what we think is our God given right to buy on credit and put off the bills. Things are coming home to roost, but I sleep very well every night.
How is it possible we send huge amounts of our treasure to our sworn enemies in the Persian Gulf and China while driving large cars that consume foreign oil. We need to wake up and right now. Why didn't we change after the 1973 oil scare? Will we now?
I did not leave my fiance's name due to her name in the mortgage industry. My fiance had a mortgage company for several years in orange county and she had a triple rating with BBB. She had mostly referrals in the mortgage business however; since the declining market, she was forced to downsize and close her office and work our of our home. We had two other homes that were investment properties. One of them had literally had a water heater that flooded throughout the house and this caused the domino effect. We had to get the insurance company to reimburse the cost to put it back to liveable condition and reimbursement of rental loss..this took six months. We painted, put a new rug throughout the home...which caused us to fall behind on the two homes, then the loss of income from the business and mortgage company..and then we went into chapter 13 to bring payments up to date...however; these loans were fixed for two years and then went into adjustable rate mortgages. The two homes in Riverside, the lenders would not remodify payments in Chapter 13. The loss mitigation department said that we had to be current to refinance our home which was impossible..since we did not qualify to get out of a bad loan. Basically it was preditory lending..the lenders took advantage of our situation and wanted more money and would not negotiate while our payments were going up. Our primary residence, we had the same problem the lender would not remodify these payments as well. The adjustment went up $2,000.00 from the original payment. We spent our savings even though the homes were upside down and we still could not negotiate with these lenders to budge. We decided to go into chapter 7 and let the two homes foreclose in Riverside and the riverside homes the payment went up $1,000.00 a piece. We felt it was a no win situation. We tried. The home we have now...is in Orange County however; upside down..and we are in negotiation for short sales and extention of the trustee sale for two months. We've had Realtors and buyers looking even with a 200k discount however; even though this home is in a very nice area..we have no firm commitment on any buyers right now. Our neighbor's do not care that we are in this situation, we've had many complaints since they want us out of the neighborhood. I feel most people that are not in this situation do not have any empathy or compasion they do not care. Luckily my fiance has family that can help us however; we've always been self supporting until now and its quite embarrasing that we've come such a long way only to have to start over again.