Most foreclosures pack into a few counties

Most foreclosures pack into a few counties

www.usatoday.com

More than half of the nation's foreclosures last year took place in 35 counties, a sign that the financial crisis devastating the national economy may have begun with collapsing home loans in only a few corners of the country.

(visit the link for the full news article)

I just saw this story today while at work, and I'm honestly shocked I didn't see a thread about it here already. If there is one and I was just not smart enough to find it, please forgive me.

As I remember it, the huge bailouts and failures were blamed on the foreclosure market, right? Now we find out that only 35 counties within the US were even affected? Methinks I smell a scam... what do you think?

TheRedneck
(I hope I did this right, first OP on this board. So if I messed something up, mods, help?)


www.usatoday.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by TheRedneck
That key markets were manipulated and targeted for manipulation is a reality. While it’s true many subprime borrowers were gotten into mortgages through liar loans deliberating overstating their incomes, speculators and flippers, drove up prices of these homes first to 25%-35% of their previous values in a very short period of time. Not only did this in essence setup subprime borrowers to most certainly fail at meeting their obligations, but in many cases even the subprime borrower was able to cash out on untapped equity in the home they were buying values were rising so fast. Ten thousand, twenty thousand, fifty thousand even in some cases a hundred thousand dollars in real cash could be immediately tapped into from the difference between the actual loan being granted and the actual cost of the home. People with poor credit, limited income, and no money down often got into their new home with plenty of excess cash to burn. Mortgage brokers, facilitators and realtors would walk away with commissions often in the tens of thousands of dollars per transaction.

Those 35 counties by the way probably contain well over half the population. Many of them are counties with millions of citizens living in each one.

Certain markets in California and Florida did attract speculators and brokers and realtors from all over the United States looking to cash in on all the cash to be had in almost every loan being signed.

Banks as well loosened their lending standards as to be all most nonexistent as they would bundle up the loans and peddle them off to retirement, hedge and 401k funds as fast as they could be packaged.

Ah the good old days.

There just might have been something up indeed!