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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Mortgage Delinquencies: Less Stigma, More Walk-Aways?

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Tuesday, September 28, 2010   

PHOENIX - At least one in five homeowners owe more on their mortgages than their houses are worth, and an increasing number think it's okay to walk away from those mortgages. A Pew Research Center survey found about two-thirds of respondents still believe it's unacceptable to stop making house payments; but 36 percent say, at least in some cases, it makes sense.

Attorney Liz Quick counsels people considering bankruptcy. She says having a lawyer or credit counselor look at the original loan documents can sometimes be helpful.

"You might end up having issues related to your loan, perhaps predatory lending - or perhaps just a contract that you may need something looked at so you can see if there's any protection for you within your contract rights."

Quick thinks "walking away" isn't an especially accurate term, that most people try to hang on and keep paying as long as they can, even when bankruptcy or negotiating with creditors would be better options. In the Pew survey, the less secure people felt about their finances and the more their homes had dropped in value, the more likely they were to say it's okay to default on a mortgage.

In Quick's experience, most people don't intend to default on their obligations. Instead, she says, they run through their savings to stay current, and often, wait too long to seek help.

"You know, educating yourself and getting as much information as you can, as early as you can, is always the best advice. And there's a lot going now on that's there to find, but you do have to put out the effort and go after it."

Quick has found, in some cases, it is a bank that suggests people stop making house payments and then drags its feet on making modification arrangements, causing the homeowners to fall further behind.

"Many of the banks who were purportedly considering modifications would actually require folks to be at least two months delinquent on their mortgage, to even be eligible to apply for a modification."

Quick says the federal mortgage modification programs got off to rocky starts, but in her view, they seem to be more responsive now.

The survey, "Walking Away," is at www.pewsocialtrends.org.




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