Even though the stories are shocking — almost unbelievable — this is a must-read article about bank and mortgage fraud. The article documents the growing problem of ‘zombie foreclosures’, where homeowners are hauled back into court sometimes years later for their house that they handed over to the bank. This is crystal clear evidence that the current system is broken. The safest approach is to build just what you can afford with cash and avoid the whole mess.
Source: MSN.com
Image source: Mother Jones
Want to be outraged?
Take a look at this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2013/09/10/mistakes-put-homes-in-peril/?tid=ts_carousel
The whole home ownership system in this country is corrupt.
Time for a new system.
Thanks so much for the info. I always leave with more
knowledge. I live in MT. and am looking to start building
sustainabely.
The key principle in cold climates is lots of insulation. Consider post and beam with straw bale walls on scoria bags and R-50 roof with metal roofing.
Reading that article made me nauseous.
What a complete and total clusterf*ck.
(I apologize for the language, but in this instance, I am convinced that is the most appropriate term to describe the situation. Why sugar coat it? clusterf*ck is what it is, and it’s the best term to use.)
If ever there was a more corrupt and broken system, it is our system of banking, building codes, and home ownership.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be,
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell. My blessing season this in thee.
William Shakespeare
Hamlet
Act 1 Scene 3
Polonius speaking to his son, Laertes, just as he is about to leave home to make his way in the world. Wise words that are as true today as ever.
Sometimes the greats know the truth 400 years in advance of current events. Sadly, too many of us don’t listen.
People fall for it because they want a big beautiful home NOW instead of living within their means.
In addition to “banking, building codes, and home ownership” I would add the failure of our legal system. Matt Taibbi does a great job of exposing mortgage fraud and how the legal system is complicit. In one of his articles he describes ‘robo courts’ set up to process thousands of foreclosures as quickly as possible. Each case is dealt with in a few minutes, and they rule in favor of the big banks almost every time no matter the evidence. It’s totally rigged because many/most times the banks don’t have and can’t show the title.
Don’t get me started on Lawyers. My comments on your blog get way too long winded far too often as it is. It’s taking all my willpower to withhold my rant on that subject, but I’m going to restrict my comments to the following:
People fall for it because they want a big beautiful home NOW instead of living within their means.
Your statement, I partially agree with. Only partially because I think that is the logic that many people use, BUT NOT ALL. I suspect when you read my explanation, you’ll probably agree with my reasoning.
I think a great many people simply don’t see any practical alternative, and they get sucked into the corrupt system for lack of knowledge of any better way.
The system has become so bloated and corrupt that it dominates most everyone’s options whether they want to participate in the corrupt system or not. Many people want to purchase small affordable homes, but can’t. Building codes have far too restrictive minimum size requirements. Combine that with restrictive zoning laws and restrictive homeowner association requirements and building small homes becomes doubly to quintuply more difficult. (Most homeowners’ associations are puppet organizations of big developers that want to force people to build the biggest most expensive homes possible in their subdivisions.) Since the only homes available are large expensive ones, people are forced into purchasing larger houses than they want, and larger houses than they can afford. That forces people to borrow money, or at least to borrow more money to be able to buy the bigger more expensive house.
The whole system is designed to work against individual citizens and their best interests. Everything is skewed toward forcing home buyers to hand over as much money to the corporate interests and government as possible.
Sticking with my impromptu theme for this thread of providing supporting quotes from well known books:
The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.
Bible – Proverbs 22:7
The age of that quote is not known with precision, but generally thought to have been written down by Solomon or someone of his era some 3000 or so years ago +/-.
I guess mankind has been fighting this battle for a VERY long time.
Yep. That’s why we focus on practical, affordable housing solutions. Unfortunately most people are so busy working that they don’t have time to research unconventional alternatives like the ones we talk about.