by Elizabeth Wordsmith

Created on: May 13, 2008

The mortgage loan crisis is a mess. Some of the problem can be blamed on mortgagors giving out risky loans to borrowers who can't afford the risks. But there are so many other factors.

First, the value of real estate is determined not only by cost of materials, but supply and demand and desirability of location. When the country started experiencing economic problems and inflation, salaries were not being increased to meet inflation. If they had been, possibly many people who are going through foreclosure could have avoided defaulting on their mortgages.

Inflation in gas prices and homeowners insurance occurred so suddenly there was no time for incomes to adjust to meet those demands. Many homeowners tried to avoid foreclosure by putting their homes on the market. But because there were so many homeowners in this fix, the housing market became flooded. When supply is up, the value goes down because the buyer has more selection and leverage.

Before this crisis, people were afraid to not invest. Housing prices were skyrocketing and home buyers rushed to get into the game before they were priced out. Now they are afraid to invest. They don't know when this market is going to hit bottom and if their money is going to be secure in real estate.

Everyone has lost in this housing crisis. The homeowner lost their equity. The banks must now scramble to unload these homes they have taken back while also having to maintain them and keep property taxes current. The investors in subprime loans lost money. The builders can't get rid of their spec homes. Because the value of homes has decreased across the board, city governments don't have the same tax base for services, projects, and other commitments. Realtors aren't making any money because nothing is moving. And now the banks have swung to the other side of the pendulum and have tightened up their requirements for mortgage approval such that not many people can qualify. In the great wisdom of our government, we are now printing more money to offset this problem, but devaluing the dollar and creating more inflation at the same time. In turn, taxpayers will have to pay for these failed investments in higher taxes.

What is the point of having laws and regulations? I see no one having to serve jail time for this debacle. Who is watching the hen house? The fox or the hound? People should be going to jail for acts of fraud. Yet, they are enjoying their earnings from these scams and have probably set up shop somewhere else doing

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