People around the country have effectively stalled their foreclosure by doing the following. These tips are not only helpful to people in need of foreclosure help, they can be powerful weapons for the public to fight back against unfair practices by those on the top.
First and foremost, if you are facing foreclosure, know your rights and beware of scammers offering to rent your house to you. You must look into your mortgage loan agreement to figure out what your bank can do if you can't make your mortgage payments. Some rules apply depending on state laws, find a safe housing counselor here.
TIP #1:
This has turned out to be tip #1 because it is the most effective at stalling foreclosures. Here it is: Apply and reapply for < ahref="http://makinghomeaffordable.gov/modification_yes.html">the Making Home Affordable Program. Foreclosure auctions must be stalled by law. Go to the MHAP website and find a housing counselor and fill out the hardship affidavit.
TIP #2:
Look into the possibility of a short sale. Short sales often stall foreclosure proceedings because mortgage lenders would rather not go through a short sale process and may stall foreclosure proceedings while they review it. This is a risky tip, but could help preserve your credit rating and allow you to stay in your home until you figure things out.
Tip #3: Put your house up for sale - lenders are likely to suspend foreclosure proceedings. Many times, lenders will allow you to stop making mortgage payments until your house is sold.
Tip #4: A bankruptcy filing is bad for your credit rating for many years, but if you decide to choose this route, you will be debt-free and can possibly continue to live in your house (with a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing).
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THE COMMUNITY CRAMDOWN
When banks proceed on foreclosures, they will hold auctions to sell off your house as quickly as possible. Look into working with a community bank who together with enough of your friends and neighbors and foreclosure organizers can bid and win the foreclosure auction on your behalf. They can either have you pay rent until you can buy it back or negotiate a new mortgage with lower rates. Organize towards having a large number of people attend the auction (to push out other bidders). Email us if you plan to pursue this option and we can help.
Find out more details about your auction - banks have listings of their foreclosures and government agencies make announcements on their public auctions. On the internet, you can visit www.real-estate-foreclosed-home.info
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If you believe that the terms and risks of the loan weren’t fully disclosed to you, call the Federal Trade Commission at (877) FTC-HELP (382-4357) to file a complaint. You can also go to FTC's site, contact your state attorney general or consumer affairs department.
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1)Lawrence Goodwyn’s “The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America,” one of the truly great works of American history and how to build a foundation for 20th century American political economy.
2)William Greider’s “Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country,” picks up where Goodwyn’s left off. An essential read in understanding money, banking and finance in the 20th century.
3)Kevin Phillips’ “Bad
Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics, and the Global Crisis of
American Capitalism,”
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MELTDOWN CAUSES: Articles and Interviews 1. Finger of blame points to shadow banking’s implosion -Financial Times "FINANCIAL INNOVATIONS" 1. Genesis of the Debt Disaster -Financial Times WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE BIG BANKS THAT FAIL? 1. Willem Buiter -FT ANTITRUST 1. Breaking up the Banks -Zephyr Teachout REGULATION 1. Regulatory Capture -Thomas Frank WHAT'S IT MEAN FOR THE ECONOMY? 1. Evolution or Revolution -Bill Gross Blogs |
By Michael McKee and Scott Lanman
Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. regulators should consider breaking up large financial institutions considered “too big to fail,” former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said.
Those banks have an implicit subsidy allowing them to borrow at lower cost because lenders believe the government will always step in to guarantee their obligations. That squeezes out competition and creates a danger to the financial system, Greenspan told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
“If they’re too big to fail, they’re too big,” Greenspan said today. “In 1911 we broke up Standard Oil -- so what happened? The individual parts became more valuable than the whole. Maybe that’s what we need to do.”
At one point, no bank was considered too big to fail, Greenspan said. That changed after the Treasury Department under then-Secretary Hank Paulson effectively nationalized Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Treasury and Fed bailed out Bear Stearns Cos. and American International Group Inc.
“It’s going to be very difficult to repair their credibility on that because when push came to shove, they didn’t stand up,” Greenspan said.
Fed officials have suggested imposing a tax or requiring higher capital ratios on larger banks to ensure the firms’ safety and reduce some of the competitive advantage from the implied subsidy. Greenspan said that won’t work.
“I don’t think merely raising the fees or capital on large institutions or taxing them is enough,” Greenspan said. “I think they’ll absorb that, they’ll work with that, and it’s totally inefficient and they’ll still be using the savings.”
‘Really Arbitrarily’
The former Fed chairman said while “just really arbitrarily breaking down organizations into various different sizes” goes against his philosophical leanings, something must be done to solve the too-big-to-fail issue.
“If you don’t neutralize that, you’re going to get a moribund group of obsolescent institutions which will be a big drain on the savings of the society,” he said.
“Failure is an integral part, a necessary part of a market system,” he said. “If you start focusing on those who should be shrinking, it undermines growing standards of living and can even bring them down.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Michael McKee in New York at mmckee@bloomberg.net; Scott Lanman in Washington at slanman@bloomberg.net
