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American families cashed out $333 billion, putting their homes at risk

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G_j Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 12:59 PM
Original message
American families cashed out $333 billion, putting their homes at risk
Edited on Tue Jan-11-05 01:02 PM by G_j

Wonky But Worth It: A House Of Cards
by Demos
A new report finds that American families are relying on credit cards for daily expenses, putting their homes at risk.

http://tompaine.com/action/#003300
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/a_house_of_cards.php

The report finds that American households cashed out $333 billion worth of equity from their homes between 2001 and 2003 and, as a result, we actually own less of our homes than we did in the 1970s and 1980s. The report also describes how mortgage fraud is causing Americans to owe more money on their homes than they should.SEE THE REPORT
http://www.demos-usa.org/pubs/AHouseOfCards.pdf


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EastofEdon Donating Member (435 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 01:24 PM
Response to Original message
1. as Bush cashes out the whole country
"conservative"?

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MadHound Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 01:38 PM
Response to Original message
2. What else do you expect?
After all, real world wages have been dropping steadily for the past thirty plus years, inflation, medical care, all of this has been going up and up. The shortfall has to be made up somehow, so around and around goes the credit card merry go round. Average amount of credit card debt per person, $8000.00.

And all of this is encouraged, even applauded by corporate America, and it's political puppets in government. Buy, Buy, Buy! is the new corporate mantra, with all of the political puppets mouthing along. What was Bush's message to Americans after 911? Not donate relief money, or blood, or other actions that could have had real significance, no. It was that we should be patriotic and Go Shopping.

And thus, we have spent ourselves right up to the brink of an economic disaster. The economy has come to rely almost totally on the consumer class to prop it up, yet with interest rates soaring, people are now starting to pull back on spending. Thus the dominoe falls that will bring down our economy. Less spending leads to a slow down in the economy, leads to fewer jobs, leads to less spending, etc etc. Meanwhile, with all of those credit cards due, people will go bankrupt right and left. And yet the monied class will simply consider it a buying opportunity, like they did the Great Depression.

I'm telling you people, pay off your credit cards, and as much other debt as you can handle. Save as much as possible, and preferably put some aside in "real wealth" such as gold or other intrinsic wealth holders, for the dollar could very well become meaningless. Plant a garden, become energy and economically self sufficient as much as you can. Get to know your neighbors, for you're going to have to help each other to survive. There is the perfect economic storm on the horizon, and I would be willing to bet that before all is said and done, it will kill more people worldwide than the tsunami did.
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alfredo Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 01:57 PM
Response to Reply #2
4. for the past ten years we have been
paying off our credit cards every month. That's the only way to use the cards.
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alfredo Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 01:55 PM
Response to Original message
3. Look for a lot of McMansions to become apartment houses.
How else will people be able to afford them?
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Gold Metal Flake Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 02:03 PM
Response to Original message
5. But I want my big-ass motor home that sits 11 months of the year!
And I want my five snowmobiles, and my six dirt bikes and my two SUVs and my 3 HDTVs and my swimming pool and my pool table and my 28' boat and my three quads and my hot rod and my jacuzzi and my cruise once a year and my riding lawnmower and my skiing vacations and my McIntosh stereo system and my 13 cell phone accounts and my four mortgages!

It's freedom! It's my lifestyle It's my due! Can't take it with you! What if you die tomorrow! Live for now!

And give me my private Social Security account so that I can take a loan out on that!!!!
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midnight armadillo Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 02:10 PM
Response to Reply #5
6. ROTFLMAO
A DUer pointed me towards the Cheapskate Monthly website a little bit ago, and I've read their book and their forums. Sound advice.

But, I was astounded at the number of people who posted about how they needed to stop all the compulsive shopping, shopping when they're depressed, etc. etc. I just can't imagine that - I hate spending money. My credit card debt is mostly medical care and car-repair related, and will all be paid off next January.
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ReverendDeuce Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Jan-11-05 02:18 PM
Response to Original message
7. Ehh... a contrarian viewpoint on use of credit cards...
Forgive me for doubting these numbers...

I don't see this taking into account the number of people who use their bank check cards (many of which go thorugh Visa) for bill payments.

I know the number of Visa checking account cards has gone up dramatically and with the rise of on-line bill payment services that are tied to a credit card, I am guessing that many people are doing this and the situation is not so bleak.

Myself, for example... I use my Visa check card to pay most all of my recurring bills. It comes directly from my checking account and I am able to easily tally up and compare statements at the end of each month. Never had a problem since I started doing this in 2000.

Anyway... that's just my two cents, for what it's worth. :)
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