Foreclosures in Military Towns Surge at Four Times U.S. Rate

Source: Bloomberg

May 27 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Air Force Technical Sergeant Jeffrey VerSteegh, who repairs F-16 jets for the 132nd Fighter Wing, departed Des Moines, Iowa, in April for his third tour in Iraq. The father of four may lose his home when he returns.

The four-bedroom farmhouse he and his wife, Kathleen, own near the Iowa State Fairgrounds went into default in December after their monthly mortgage costs doubled to $1,100. Kathleen missed work because of breast cancer and they struggled to keep up the house payment, falling behind on other bills. Their bankruptcy was approved by the court a week after VerSteegh left for Iraq.

In the midst of the worst surge in mortgage defaults in seven decades, foreclosures in U.S. towns where soldiers live are increasing at a pace almost four times the national average, according to data compiled by research firm RealtyTrac Inc. in Irvine, California. As military families like the VerSteeghs signed up for the initial lower rates and easier terms of subprime mortgages, the number of people taking out Veterans Administration loans fell to the lowest in at least 12 years.

``We've never faced a situation like this, not in the Vietnam War, World War II, or the Korean War, where so many military are in danger of losing their homes,'' said Paul Sullivan, executive director of Veterans for Common Sense, a Washington-based advocacy group started in 2002 by Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans. ``No one asked them for their credit score when we asked them to fight for us.''


Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=awj2TMDLnwsU&refer=home

Is the solution, then, to STAY on active duty?

:mad:
rocknation

However, when the soldier returns 12 months later, there is $10,000 owed on the house and it still goes to shit!

we used it once to smack down a landlord who was trying to evict someone who had just been called up!

http://www.uscg.mil/legal/la/topics/sscra/about_the_sscra.htm

Also, in May 2001, Congress initiated a military food stamps program to give relief to financially distressed military families.

not new. In 1987, soldiers in my unit were getting them. The number of dollars in food stamps redeemed in commissaries is staggering.

I wondered if they were all officer wives.

Ye Olde O-1 2nd Lt. gets twice as much as a E-5 Sargeant.

SM1(SW), who was a E-6 and remembers.

which is the path my father took in the Marine Corps. I know that enlisted aren't making jack. This GI bill is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of needs for the military soldiers.

http://www.army.com/money/payrates_enlisted_a08.html
http://www.army.com/money/payrates_warrant_a08.html
http://www.army.com/money/payrates_officer_a08.html

Minimum for a O-1 is 2555.70 per month.

(seems that E-5 pay has been raised since I last looked; it was once set at 1/2 of a O-1. Currently the 'E-5 under 2 years' is 1918.80 per month.
Warrant officers W-1 starts at 2497.80 per month.)

some of the sailors on the ship were getting food stamps in 1978.

One of my borrowers called up in a panic because her reservist-husband had just been called up for Desert Storm, and she was worried about being able to make the mortgage payment. I explained what they needed to do, and that I would reduce their interest rate and payment when I got the paperwork. (As I recall, it was not an ominous request - just a copy of his orders, and a letter stating that he "wished to invoke his rights under the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act".) She thanked me several times, and asked if she could send a nice letter to my boss. I said, "Oh, heavens no. He'll be plenty ticked off when when he finds out about this, and even more so if he knows that I gave you the information." There was a little bit of profanity when he realized that we had to reduce their interest rate, and that there was no way for him to get around it. He was a real dick. I only stayed there for a couple of months longer, but had the satisfaction of knowing that I did the right thing.

we are throwing as much cash as we possibly can at the military and politicians are lining up to throw even more dollars their way through GI bills, mortgage relief, subsidized insurance etc. I was in the service, I know from my own experience how we pamper those in the service with pay and benefits unlike anything you can get in the civilian world. Retirement after 20 years service, free medical care for you and your entire family including eye glasses and dental, discounted shopping for all types of food and goods at stores on the base, free or subsidized housing including utilities, free or subsidized insurance, free college education, deeply discounted recreation and entertainment like movies, bowling, liquor, gyms, recreation boats, golf courses, almost anything you can think of. Annual cost of living increases, unlimited pay and promotions based only on your ambition and willingness to advance. The list goes on and on. We have created a very special, privileged class of people in the military. I personally knew low ranking enlisted men living in large, moderen ocean front apartments for $300 a month, the govt. was paying the rest of the rent. If this guy is losing his house with all these advantages, it's because he doesn't have a clue how to manage his income.

Furthermore:

Medical treatment provided by military doctors isn't always that great (I've heard plenty of horror stories). Tricare for family members is good.
Families DO NOT receive free eye care or dental. You can get dental but you pay MONTHLY premiums and the annual benefit is limited.
Discounted shopping - the commissary is great for some items but you can find just as good (if not better bargains) in many grocery stores.
The PX (retail store) is overpriced.
College - is not free and you have to qualify monthly benefits.
Some bases have great movie prices, others not so great.
The HOUSING on many bases was UNFIT. Many housing units have been riddled with BLACK MOLD and deemed unsafe for human habitation. However, the military is now replacing a lot of the substandard units.

I've met many enlisted who qualified for food stamps and other benefits b/c their pay was so low.

You don't have ANY idea what you are talking about. Furthermore, the military is not like an average job. You can't just change your job b/c you have a jerk of a boss and you don't just live and work in one place for 20 years.

I'll add that to my own personal experience in the service spent mostly overseas or at sea. I do know what I'm talking about because I lived it. Granted things may have changed since I was in but the military life is still one of privilege. And of course all the govt asks in return is that you be willing to kill or be killed, so it's still no bargain.

I know one man who just re-enlisted and he got a large ($35,000, I think) signing bonus, and the government is sending him to school for nuclear engineering full time right now. That bonus became the down payment on a house.

I will tell you, I wish they'd get better medical care. Veterans included.

Of course "support the troops" is only a mantra to the rightwingnuttery.

Poll Finds Strong Support for Bush in U.S. Military
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: October 16, 2004

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 (AP) - When asked whom they would trust as commander in chief, people in the military and their families chose President Bush over Senator John Kerry, a decorated Vietnam veteran, by almost 3 to 1, according to a survey released on Friday.

snip.....

Those in the military and their families have a more favorable view of Mr. Bush than Americans generally, and they are more optimistic about Iraq, the economy and the nation's direction.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/16/politics/campaign/16military.html