We are all experiencing the worst recession since the great depression. It is said that as many as 1 in 12 mortgages are delinquent more than 90 days and there are more foreclosures all of the time.
And much of it is blamed on the lax lending standards of the past.
But has the pendulum swung too far the other direction now? If it has, are we going to be able to climb out of this mortgage purgatory any time soon?
A recent Wall Street Journal article, ?Borrowers Hit New Home-Loan Hurdles?, talks about this problem. In one example, the lender was worried about a $14.00 missed payment on a credit card from the year 2001!
Fourteen dollars? Nine Years Ago?
Is there any hope here for anyone? Other than the perfect credit people, of course.
Part of the problem is that the secondary market can actually force the banks into buying back the mortgages if any problems are found with the underwriting. Apparently the instances of this happening have increased dramatically in the past year or so.
However, if people are unable to get mortgages because of minor problems from many years ago, what about the people who have had recent problems due to the economy? And how does the excess inventory of homes (many owned by banks themselves!) ever sell?
If people can?t get mortgages, homes won?t sell and the prices will continue to plummet causing more and more homeowners to be ?upside down? (if there are any out there anymore anyway!)?
Credit repair can help. If you have items from over 7 years ago still showing on your credit they can and should be removed. The majority of things have a statute of limitations of 7 years, with the exception of tax liens, Federal student loans, and specific types of bankruptcies.