by Lisa Moeller

Created on: September 12, 2009   Last Updated: September 17, 2009

A Tough One to Swallow

So here's a rawhide I gnawed on for nearly two years while my domicile floated away in a soapy puddle left when the housing market bubble burst. I feel comfortable assuming that you or someone you know is chewing on the same rawhide. I bet your jaw muscles ache, too.

I lived in my home for 20 years, with the exception of the two years following my divorce. I bought my house back from my ex-husband-now-friend, using an advance of child support for the down payment. I was secure in the knowledge (read: popular stupid assumption) that the healthy amount of equity I had would only grow. I was safe and secure.

About two years later, my home value fell about $160,000. Zillow.com faithfully reminded me each month that the value continued to decrease. One month the value dropped over $12,000.

Now, imagine you're a protective dog, as many are, and a stranger approaches your backyard with the intent to enter. You'd think about your "pack" and their safety. You'd think about your territory. You'd warn with a look and a stance and then the low growl. Soon, if the stranger didn't take heed, you'd be in full blown defense mode, barking and snarling, prepared to do whatever is necessary to defend your place.

But let's say the stranger showed no fear and approached with confidence, maybe carrying a baseball bat. It might take a couple of whacks, but ultimately, a domestic dog would eventually back down and slink away cowed by the stranger's power.

I'm that dog. I fought for my home for nearly two years following the increase of my mortgage payment by 25% due to a bank escrow estimation error. I watched helplessly as the value of my home dropped to over $100,000 less than the mortgage, taking with it my investment into my future. I was left standing empty-handed in an upside-down home. Because the mortgage payment represented 65% of my income, I lived in unrelenting fear of something breaking, the ceiling leaking, or any other unanticipated expense. My home seemed to have turned on me and held me prisoner. The home I poured blood, sweat, and tears into to improve. The home in which I raised my two sons. The home where my marriage semi-thrived and then failed. The home I left and came back to with all my hopes and dreams as a single mom. The home into which I put everything I had and some of my future.

I couldn't sell it and pay off my mortgage or refinance it to make it more affordable. It was worth too little. I had to begin to say no to any new improvements,

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