Ignorant people taking on more debt than they can afford, taking out ARMs (ugh!), lenders praying on the ignorance of consumers, etc. I don't know that there's much home owners can do to alleviate these problems... I think the general public just needs to stop taking on more debt than they can handle. It's all about education.

It seems that for several years the mortgage industry gave loans to people who had poor credit ratings. It's now coming back to haunt them. I think the only way it can be alleviated is through government help.

The advertising of companies like Greenlight and Ditech have, more than anything else, caused the current forclosure problems in the US. Too many people have seen the ads and gotten variable-rate mortgages who really shouldn't have because they can't really afford them. During the 80's and especially the 90's and early 2000's, the housing and credit markets were such that most people saw their home equity as a ready-made bank account, which is never a good thing, because it often leads to this very situation when interest rates go up. Ultimately, there's not much of anything home owners can do to alleviate the problem except to tighten their belts and pay these mortgages off. Bankruptcy is an option, but should be considered only in the most dire of circumstances.

the simple answer is ..the banks...the banks...THE BANKS !! and the home owners are up shit creek without a paddle ..unless they form a class action against the banks ..after all its the banks greed that has put them in this position ...the banks knew that these people could NEVER afford to pay them back ..NEVER!! and as soon as these ridiculously low honeymoon rates finished they were always going to be in trouble and the banks knew it!, ther government should be stepping in and making the banks refinace these people for free so that they get to keep their homes ...but no the banks can and do what ever they want to do and the people get kicked in the balls again by big business and with the governments blessing

Rising interest rates and economic slowdown are causing Adjustable Rate Mortage (ARM) rates to rise. This can significantly increase monthly mortgage payments, making it difficult for struggling homeowners to make their payments. When the payments are not made, the banks foreclose on the home. As soon as the interest rates started to rise, homeowners with ARMs should have refinanced with fixed rate mortgages. The interest rates are generally higher, but at least they don't change, so they're easier to deal with. Exacerbating the problem are rising utility rates thanks to fuel costs going up. I've been feeling a bit of a pinch in my utility rates, but I fortunately had a very favorable fixed-rate mortgage.

Homeowners can keep their credit like gold. Always pay your house payment first!! Don't ever be late on it. Banks were so greedy trying to get all these mortgages and telling customers all they'd have to do at the end of the one and two percent loans would be to refinance. Now, no one can afford a jump of 4 points or more. This country's economy is in a heck of a position right now. Hold on tight!

The answer to this is quite compplex. There are many reasons for a rise in house prices. One is the weak dollar. Another is the price of gas, which is affecting the price of almost everything in the world. In additon, wood has become quite expensive, as had land. All we can do is hope our economy, maybe with a new president, may avoid a rescesion. :)

prospective home owners shouldn't take a mortgage rate they can't afford. If you are afford a 10% rate SAY NO and keep walking, If you have debt then rent for a year and pay off your obligations. Put down a descent % of your mortgage and pay your bills on time.

People bought homes they couldn't afford hoping that the escalating values of those homes would be increasing their equity and then they could refinance, take money out, and continue to make house payments. Unscrupulous financial institutions, coupled with people who aren't too smart financially, and a huge market downturn all converged in a "perfect wave"...I don't think the people deserve a bailout..they knew or they should have known that they were playing "Russian Roulette". The situation is getting worse, we are in a recession despite the happy face that "the decider" tries to put on it. What a mess! :)

There are two major problems. One is the banks loaning money to people who should never qualify for either a loan period or the amount the bank lends them. The second is the amount of people who play the housing market like the stockmarket and try to flip houses. I guess if There was a third it would be the people who by a house without educating themselves about what kind of investment they are getting into.

You can blame the banks. but people get in over their heads by buying houses they can't really afford especially at today's inflated prices. When people have dug themselves into a rut the best thing is to stop digging

My mom's in real estate, & most mortgage brokers KNEW this was coming & they continued to push through mortgages for people who they KNEW wouldn't be able to afford their monthly pymts. It's stupid, but they just wanted their commission & didn't care what happened to everyone who is now suffering from a declining economy. At the same time it's hard for me to feel sorry for the "poor souls" who are now going through foreclosure processes when they knew all along that the mortgage broker was telling them to lie about their income BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T MAKING ENOUGH TO AFFORD A HOME!!!! Well now they don't have to worry about that, because they don't have one.

I think there's more than meets the eye here.I have spent countless hours researching stories about mortgage lenders.The name of the lender/complaints and the stories you read are very similar.People are losing their homes and in noway is it mostly the homeowners fault.There's a pattern here. Payments being recorded late although they were sent in on time,being put on a forbearance plan that is outragious sometimes,if you try to refinance it's like pulling teeth to get your info from your lender,if you try a "short sale" it can take months to close the deal after you have an offer and every day you move closer to foreclosure. It's like the homeowners are doing all they can but the lenders and the banks just ignor their efforts to stop foreclosure.

The PRIMARY cause of the so-called "mortgage crisis" is the government. Government has encouraged lenders to offer higher and higher LTV (Loan-To-Value) mortgage loans to increasingly risky borrowers. This is not a large problem in markets that continue to appreciate, building equity buffers. The next culprit are the borrowers themselves. They are often their own worst enemy by stripping the accumlated equity in their homes to pay off their badly-managed credit accounts. They also tend to buy homes for which they barely qualify. The banks are merely facillitators and co-dependents in this addiction. The banks are the parties that take the $50K to $60K average loss whenever they have to foreclose. The banks cannot afford to keep up the current pace of freclosures and short sales. The government's solution is to open up the "funny money" floodgates from the Federal Reserve. This will inflate the money supply causing prices of other goods and services to rise accordingly. Inflation is a tax most cruel and insideous, after all. Unfortunately, that is how our governement creates and solves problems -- all at the expense of the average taxpayer, of course.

Over taxation due to schooltaxes and property taxes. Especially senior citizens on fixed income are losing their homes because assessment values are inflated on those citizens homes with the local gov. intention to foreclose. then they sell the home at the inflated assessed value and make some additional cash. They also do this intentionally to the poor, disabled, service man and senior citizens.

Not being able to read, write, do simple math or have any common sense...and agreeing to buy a $100,000 home at an inflated price of, say, $250,000, while paying the mortgage, property taxes, insurance and, OMG, eat!!...all out of a welfare check, usually doesn't cut it! But greedy, scheming loan people, working hand-in-hand with corrupt politicians, said it would be OK! In other words, "equal opportunity" run amok by power-hungry, vote-buying politicians backed by the construction, real estate and banking lobbies...things you'll not read in the New York Times!

Too many mortgage loans on your home. If you need or want money, your home is an easy collateral. Banks, finance companies, mortgage and loan companies, will loan you big bucks on your home. My phone used to ring off the wall until I went to cellular. >> Don't ever mortgage your home...unless you simply must...because of an emergency life or death situation. Don't mortgage your home to send your spoiled rotten little brat to college...The little brat should have learned to work and what it costs to live in this world. There are things called work-study and scholarships, and Pell Grants. But, your kid needs to have good grades from high school....otherwise nobody is going to think they are serious about getting a college degree and the scholarship application may go straight into the trash can ..the one that has the little basketball net and backboard on it. Have you seen them? They are cute. And every college office has one....

Yes the banks should not allow people with bad credit and no money to be able to qualify for loans. But...It is the person who is trying to buy a home who knows that they can NOT afford it who should be held responsible. If you can't afford it...do NOT even think about trying to buying it. Be responsible not greedy.

I dunno. Just a shot inna dark? = Live up to their mortgage agreements? ;-)

TO ALLEVIATE THIS PROBLEM. A PERSON NEEDS TO TAKE THE INITIATIVE AND MAKE A DEAL WITH THE BANKS AND CHANGE ALL CLOSE TO FORECLOSED HOMES FROM BUYING TO RENTING AT A LOWER PAYMENT THE HOMEOWNER CAN AFFORD, BECAUSE THE BANKS DONT WANT TO LOOSE OUT EITHER. LIKE SOME HOUSES CAN BE RENTED OUT, LIKE A 3 BEDROOM TO 3 DIFFERENT PEOPLE WITH HOUSEHOLD PREVILEDGES. IF ENOUGH WERE SET UP LIKE THIS, ALL CAN WORK OUT GOOD AND THE ORIGINAL HOMEOWNER THAT IS NOW RENTING, BUT STILL LIVING IN THEIR HOMES CAN LATER RETURN TO BUYING THEIR HOMES THEY HAVE BEEN LIVING IN, BUT START A NEW CONTRACT WITH PAYMENTS THEY CAN AFFORD NOW, SINCE THE BANKS RECEIVED PAYMENTS FOR INDEPENDANT LEASIMNG THROUGH ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL INWHICH TAKES CARE OF MOST OF THE HIGH PAYMENTS AND CAN RESELL AT A LOWER PAYMENT. IN THE LONG RUN. THE BANK GETS THEIR MONEY AND THE HOMEOWNER KEEPS THEIR HOMES. SIMPLE LOGIC= A WIN WIN SITUATION.

The average american gets paid $8.00 per hour and might take home $900 per month or $1,100 if he/she has a spouse they would have about the same.An average morgage payment is $1,500-2,500 per month so the payment is more than the average american makes per month.So there's whats wrong.What can be done?.Learn how to remodel houses and find a piece of crap and rebuild it yourself and then get stuck with a project that lasts forever that you grow to hate.Welcome to america my friend.