“There sure is a lot of anger towards the FBers. Are you guys as angry at the irresponsible business practices of the lenders who wrote these loans and then tossed off the liability to unknowing purchasers of MBSes (which probably includes all of us by way of 401K/pension investments). Many of these guys got very rich and will be working their next scam while we are all stuck picking up the tab. The FBers are screwed, period. They’re gonna lose their houses and many will go bankrupt. Yes they were stupid and deserve what they get but it is amazing to me to see how everyone on this board has already been manipulated by the media into giving the lenders a free pass and focusing all of their anger on the FBers. Those loans SHOULD HAVE BEEN ILLEGAL. PEOPLE SHOULD BE GOING TO PRISON but they’re not going to. Everything is going according to plan in this giant game of 3-card monty and we’re all getting conned.”
Where to begin?
First off, the anger is not directed at FBs in general, only those who act as if it’s not their fault, act as if they have no responsibility in the matter, and act as if they were “victims” here. They voluntarily signed their name to a million dollar contract, without reading it all! Yeah, I’ve got anger to those who did something incredibly stupid and then want a handout or a do over or a bailout. Screw them…
However, I have a buddy who bought recently (late 04) and had his rate reset and have his payments skyrocket, after he took out equity, and now his property has declined, making a new loan nearly impossible. He’s truly a FB, but he’s not blaming everyone else, or looking for a handout, or calling himself a “victim”. He’s finding solutions, accepting that his timing sucked, and dealing with it, without all this “whoa is me, how could THEY have done this to ME” hand wringing and blaming others for his situation.
As for the “industry”, and things like “these loans should have been illegal”… I call nonsense. I have another buddy, much better off, who bought in the same time frame. He put almost 50% down, and did an interest only arm loan, so that he could control the payments. In months when he made a huge commission, he’d pay a ton, other months, pay a little, some months, pay interest only. These loans were designed not just for those folks who couldn’t afford a place (for those, the loans should never be used) but also for folks like this guy who just want flexibility.
Brokers/Lenders who committed outright fraud are liable under the law, and I hope that someday they get their legal due. Sure there’s anger at them, but they are under the legal microscope now and hopefully they’ll get theirs. But buyers who bought more than they could possibly afford didn’t necesarily break any laws. If a buyer was subject to fraud by a broker, the buyer still had to sign a large document which details all the Ts and Cs perfectly well, for anyone who “cares” to read it. I read every single word of my contract in 1997. No one even told me I had to. My buddy in the first example read his contract… he knew the situation. He’s not asking for someone else to fix his problem. So I’ve got no anger there.
Its these fake “victims” who are really just dumbasses looking for a bailout, who piss me off.
