This morning, I read an article titled "Mortgage Paid. A Dozen Debts to Go" in the Wall Street Journal that almost made my head explode.
The story was about how tough banks are being on folks who can't afford their mortgage payments.
This theme plays nicely, of course, with the popular belief that the global financial crisis and housing market meltdown were the fault of Bear Stearns, AIG and Bank of America, or possibly the Greek government or British hung parliament (pick your enemy)...so long as it's not the poor, humble home owner.
Only what was shockingly clear from the story was that the typical struggling American home owner seems to be taking almost no responsibility for their own financial well-being!
For example, the Journal introduces us to the Cartaya family, who apparently had managed to rack up debts equating to 70% of their income. Desperate for help, the article reports that the Cartayas asked JP Morgan Chase to reduce their mortgage payments.
Then, they secured the help of a nonprofit counseling group to negotiate down their credit card interest rates, after which the poor Cartayas had to give up one of their two cars to make ends meet. (Imagine!)
Finally, they were forced to make the ultimate sacrifices. The Cartaya's gave up....wait for it..."vacations and eating out."
Can you believe that? These poor desperate people have to get by on ONE CAR. As if that isn't enough, they have to COOK THEIR OWN FOOD and NOT GO ON VACATION!
And then I stopped to think...wait a minute, my tax payments had to bail out AIG and Bank of America because the freaking Cartaya family didn't want to give up more than VACATIONS AND EATING OUT!??
People...if you can't afford to spend 70% of your income on your mortgage, multiple cars and irresponsible retail spending, you DESERVE TO LOSE YOUR BLOODY HOUSE!
To be frank, our house has lost a chunk of value too in the past three yars, but I suspect that if I pop into Wells Fargo on Monday morning asking if they wouldn't mind reducing my mortgage payments, they'll tell me to go to hell!
Well, I don't care. I'd rather struggle on than give up my holiday home in Tahiti.
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