"Foreclosure, you say? It's not really my problem. I pay my mortgage on time every month. It's my neighbor she's the one with a big problem with her lender. In fact I heard she is in foreclosure and that they will be taking her home away from her and the kids. It is sweet little Annie and Joey I feel bad for in all this mess. They don't deserve to pay for what their Mom did. She got in over her head with such large mortgage payments, and when they cut her hours at the Supermarket, she was no longer able to keep up. I would like to know who will be my new neighbor, I hope they will be nice and friendly. I guess I will miss Sally, she was always a good neighbor for the last seven years." https://goodofnews.com/ This is an all too common unsettling conversation in America's backyards in the last year. There is hardly a block in our neighborhoods where we have not been adversely affected by the pain and devastation of good, decent folks being literally thrown out of their homes. It is not the vision that home owners had when they purchased their little piece of the American Dream. I am sure that Sally saw her grandchildren staying with her on holidays in her house. And there will never be the graduation, birthday or Christmas parties, she had all but planned for her family. Sally is not alone, there are literally hundreds of thousands of our neighbors in some stage of foreclosure in America. And it effects more than just this one little family, it effects us all. For every person that slides down the slippery slope towards losing their security and home ownership, it has a definite rippling effect on the entire economic outlook. Sally will have problems probably for many years with employment, buying a car or even finding a good rental for her and her two small children. We can find Sally crying herself to sleep alone in her bedroom, as she focuses on a very uncertain future. She is afraid and mortified. As a nation, we can probably absorb the pain and the failure of a few Sallys. But what happens when it becomes more of the norm, instead of the exception? We all tighten our own belts, pray a little more and watch our largest investment, our home decrease in value, with each new Sally. And we will unfortunately see even more in the next four years. Too many more. We can see unfortunately over ten million ARMs adjusting up to the bursting point in the next four years. And that is not counting those, like Sally who get reduced hours, laid off or become disabled. There are some experts that put a total of over fifteen million foreclosures in our foreseeable future. But there are very few good alternatives for someone like Sally. We are told about loss mitigation with your bank. Call your bank yourself and tell them you want to negotiate on your loan. I have never yet talked to anyone that was able to get their bank to really compromise with a workable plan. Then, there are the hundreds of new loan modification companies, spouting their credentials of success. The truth lies some where around 5-10% get a good long term solution-most of the others will be in foreclosure again very soon. Why? Because the only way at this time, that the big banks will take a lesser payment, is for hardship reasons. And what most folks do not know, they will go up to close to 95% of all your bills, such as food, car, utilities, then whatever is left over will be your new affordable house payment. What happens in two months when the car needs repaired or a child has doctor bills? Where will that money come from if there is no extra cushion for emergencies? Forget rainy days, start thinking one small sprinkle. But there are some rays of good news. There are attorneys who will take on the big banking industry, and start law suits for homeowners, so as to give them a level playing field. They are looking for predatory loans, truth in lending violations and getting the banks to prove they have the right to foreclose, by producing the "NOTE"-the collateral. In our law suits of almost 1,800, we have received only 10 notes. The banks have sold the loans, portioned them of in parts to many corporations and sometimes just plain lost them. I believe that there are more times than not that if they did produce the note and all the documents, it would prove positively that there is corruption in the loan. Judges in both Florida and Iowa, have ruled that without the note, there is no proof of ownership and therefore, no right to foreclose. If Sally had a great attorney, Joey, Annie and she would get to stay and enjoy their home. More parties with laughter, instead of tears of despair. Most attorneys are terribly expensive, except the true heroes in the law arena. Is that an oxymoron? We have all heard the jokes and snide remarks about lawyers. Not this time. Heroes sometimes wear disguises, have law degrees and brief cases. If you are fortunate to find them. Let's all hope for Sally's sake and her two small children, she does.