“Spend a few days in the bankruptcy courts/hearings, and you’ll see that many people have been squatting for YEARS.”

You’re right. My attorney friend oversees bankruptcy’s in San Diego County and even she is amazed at how many people have been living in homes up to 4 years without making a mortgage payment. We personally know a couple who are hanging on to their 900K home by the skin of their teeth. Even with a combined income of 200K +, they’re broke. He just shrugs his shoulders and says “a lot of our neighbors are in the same boat”. Yet they continue to lease their Mercedes……