Somewhere in all the talk of Paulson’s plan it was whispered that these bailout efforts would be OPTIONAL for the lenders.
Has anyone else heard that? The government can’t force lenders to lower rates and lose money – we’re not that far socialist yet.
So at their discretion banks can help people stay in homes they can’t afford for a little while longer while their property value continues to decline until they are inevitably forced to sell, only later and at a lower price than if they sold at a loss today.
I read on Yahoo that the current 640,000 foreclosures (1 for every 500 Americans) is the highest in 30 years, and up to 2 million more are expected by 2009.
This hot air talk is little more than lip service for Wall Street.