ECON Here's my take....

If we do indeed go into a depression (a recession is pretty much a guarantee at this point) I for one do NOT expect tens of millions of people to lose their homes and be put out on the streets. Our politicians don't have the stomach to let that happen.

A week or two of media coverage of families living in their cars, pitching tents in public parks, etc. and I guarantee that Congress will enact a "foreclosure holiday". It would stop the evictions, and, since everyone (well, most everyone) would stop paying their mortgages, they'd have money for food, heating, meds, whatever.

Basically I expect Congress to hit a big "reset" button and what you got, you got, and what you had in your 401k or the markets would be gone.

That's my prediction should the worst occur...

Tech32, you are an optimist! I hope you are right, but I think things will be much worse. If you are right, then those of us who have budgeted, paid off bills, lived within our means will be the ones who "lose" and those who played, charged their butts off, and have huge mortgages will "win", but I would accept that if your theory is correct.

Tech, your post kinda says the grasshopper wins...

It wouldn't surprise me, tho.

Green Co, isnt that how the govmt works these days?

As for a "Foreclosure Holiday", I beleive that has already been tried (please correct me if Im wrong). It didnt help because more people just quite paying for thier houses. And those that hold those mortgages lost money and had to let people go.... etc......

And there are already people living in cars because of this... I read a story a few months ago about parking lots having fences put up and people being alowed to live in thier cars there for safety. I believe this was somewhere in Southern California.

Windi

Our government have a heart? Common. They just put $700 billion +++++ on the backs of the American people and their great grandchildren all to bail out their buddies and our enemies.

Not one red cent going to create jobs so Americans can pay their mortgage.

Sadly, we learned how much of congress really has a heart this last week - everyone who voted no. Well most of them. I am sure some just are up for re-election and got 'permission' to vote no to help them with their consituents.

The government is going to be impotent in the face of this coming crisis. A bankrupt government which has lost the confidence of the people has few choices and all of them are bad....

Tech, IMHO you give the government too much credit for caring about the needs or will of the people. I personally feel that they don't give flying "your expletive here" about us, as long as their collective butts are safe, as are those of their loved ones. Even within the "bailout", such as was called necessary for the survival of our economic system, there was imbedded a myriad of "pork barrel projects", benefitting the "chosen few".

I ask this... If the goal is to save our economic system and way of life, what are we preserving but the very things that led us to this day? Shouldn't the goal be to fix and improve, rather than to preserve? It would seem to me, that should even the worst come, WE will experience the brunt of it, while they sit in their relative comfort and watch us spin in the wind...

Just my two cents...

The government seeks to preserve the staus quo.

"...expect Congress to hit a big "reset" button and what you got, you got, and what you had in your 401k or the markets would be gone..."


Nasty business, this.

TECH32 said:

If we do indeed go into a depression (a recession is pretty much a guarantee at this point) I for one do NOT expect tens of millions of people to lose their homes and be put out on the streets. Our politicians don't have the stomach to let that happen.

A week or two of media coverage of families living in their cars, pitching tents in public parks, etc. and I guarantee that Congress will enact a "foreclosure holiday". It would stop the evictions, and, since everyone (well, most everyone) would stop paying their mortgages, they'd have money for food, heating, meds, whatever.

Basically I expect Congress to hit a big "reset" button and what you got, you got, and what you had in your 401k or the markets would be gone.

That's my prediction should the worst occur...

Click to expand...

That is unless the currency collapses...

Not to mention how that would bind up and destroy markets, leading to even more catastrophic effects...snowball effect

Plus the fact that too much of that mortgage debt product is held outside the US or by people who own the people who would call that "holiday"

And to think of the animosity that would create. I myself live in my little old place Ive been in forever, with a mortgage that is significantly less than what a single bedroom apartment rents for these days. I sleep well at night, knowing I can make ends meet no matter what. All those who got in over their heads with a huge mortgage, living pay check to pay check get, rewarded for their bad financial decisions? It would piss me off if that happened.

Emily said:

Our government have a heart? Common. They just put $700 billion +++++ on the backs of the American people and their great grandchildren all to bail out their buddies and our enemies.

Not one red cent going to create jobs so Americans can pay their mortgage.

Sadly, we learned how much of congress really has a heart this last week - everyone who voted no. Well most of them. I am sure some just are up for re-election and got 'permission' to vote no to help them with their consituents.

Click to expand...

No, no...not to have a heart - to be afraid of a) the media making them out to be heartless and b) what happens when their constituents storm their offices demanding "relief".

Boatguy,

The "status quo" is people living in houses (many in houses they can't afford).

MrPaul said:

That is unless the currency collapses...

Not to mention how that would bind up and destroy markets, leading to even more catastrophic effects...snowball effect

Plus the fact that too much of that mortgage debt product is held outside the US or by people who own the people who would call that "holiday"

Click to expand...

All true - except that even if they did try to foreclose, it would be YEARS before they made it through the courts. Just imagine what the already clogged courts would like with even 5 million foreclosures to process (not to mention all the people who would squat in empty homes).

As for debt held outside the US, well, I pretty much expect a war to come of this financial debacle anyway, so we might as well have people living in their "own" homes when it happens.