Foreclosure Crisis: The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Thousands of American homeowners who lost everything during the housing crisis are now back on their feet. Barely. Now that they've started rebuilding their finances — their lives — debt collectors are freezing their bank accounts, garnishing their wages and seizing their property.
The banks that have sold these foreclosed homes are disappointed that they haven't made more money from their sleazy tactics. They're unhappy. Remember, corporations are people and they have feelings just like the rest of us.
Lenders are able to keep gouging and sabotaging these foreclosure victims because of a legal tactic known as Deficiency Judgment. Banks used to be reluctant to use a deficiency judgment for going after foreclosed homeowners because of the expense and the bad publicity. But that was then.
Hell, why don't we just toss these foreclosed homeowners into a debtors' prison — maybe one of those lucrative private prisons — and throw the key away.
Labels: Deficiency Judgment, foreclosed homes
5 Comments:
Once at a town hall meeting years ago I asked my Congressman the very same question "when we get all recovered from this depression and all, what's to stop the banks from all of a sudden coming after us for the money?" He didn't really have an answer (Otherwise I would have remembered).
So have the banks finally figured out who owns these mortgages?
Erik
It's the bankers who should be in prison.
Erik: I would have thought that securitization (or whatever that word is) -- where a mortgage had been transferred between so many banks that nobody knew which bank owned it -- would prevent a lot of foreclosures. But I guess these little technicalities only apply when a person is going after a corporation; not the other way around.
Jerry: Absolutely.
There is a statute of limitations on debt. HOWEVER, if they can get you to "acknowledge" it, in writing or by taking almost any action on the debt, they can "reage" it, and start the clock all over. NEVER acknowledge anything to a collection agency, or sign anything from them. It's a scam to keep you on the hook.
Pat: Thanks for the information. Good to know.
Post a Comment
<< Home