It is very difficult to “sell” indentured servitude, especially servitude derived from self-chosen moral shackles. Virtue is seldom a sufficient reward to being poor. I don’t care who you are.

If they forced the banks to run their normal course and process the 8 million foreclosures in a normal time frame it would have bankrupt the entire banking system. Lower prices begets more strategic defaults. Imagine if there were 40 K more homes on the SD market today. It would create more than 40K foreclosures. Of course, this was done in conjunction with government taking over the entire mortgage market. If these things were not done 90% of the banks would have gone bankrupt and RE prices would have been a magnitude lower. God knows where unemployment would be, but you can safely assume it would be quite a bit higher.

Whether you like it or not, the banks have no other choice but to negotiate because, like the FBs, are fighting for survival.