Faces Of Foreclosure

I do not understand the following comments from a “think tank friend,” other than to know that nothing happening economically in America is new. History indicates that we have been in these circumstances before. However, the “think tank person” below assures me/us that the entire history of the world (economically) pales with ours of here and now . . . by any measure. 

“There remains an issue with housing that until it is remedied, we are in for an extended period of stagnation and underemployment. It will take many years to remedy and may not be at all if we elect a Republican next year . . . but if we can re-elect Obama, along with the house regaining a democratic majority, there could be some cool stuff in 2013 . . . Like actually legislating the requirements to roll back mortgages to 80% of CURRENT MARKET VALUE.

“The Dem caucus recently hit leadership with its latest demand (Zoe Lofgren of San Jose) that the Congress take such action. Once Obama realizes he has the votes and is no longer concerned about re-election, all bets are off for his support of what we thought were his “issues” like getting troops out of Afghanistan, gay marriage, legalized drugs and other liberal hot buttons . . .”

The comments above and below come from one of the most brilliant people I know in response to my questions and the simplistic ranting “economic view” found on YouTube.

This gentleman’s degrees include Finance, Business, Law (he holds a JD). His career includes real estate (broker and commercial sales), estate analysis/planning, insurance sales, government bond specialist, and he held seven securites licenses. For a NYSE firm, he was responsible for nearly 100 brokers, 10 traders, a real estate syndication department, a public finance department and overall operations for the largest branch office in the company. His “letters to editors” at various publications are always published. He is also a licensed sea captain.

He and his wife are extremely ethical people: They are in a position to shuck and jive people and make lots more money. They do not!

I sent him a comedian’s smart-ass rant from YouTube about America’s current economic state. His knowledgable and thoughtful responses to my questions include:

“The world and especially the US have issues . . . a balanced budget isn’t it. The proliferation of the notion that a sovereign nation’s debt is like a family credit card is DANGEROUS. Economics is more complicated than the jive-ass on YouTube would have you believe.

What OUR nation needs right now is government spending and well in excess of current revenues (which translates to bigger deficits). It doesn’t need higher taxes OR reduced spending. Part of the problem is the law of big numbers–people hear $14+ trillion national debt and that IS a big number . . . so it must be a problem?

As a percent of GDP, it is below average for the world and if we can find growth of even 3%, in a few years, the percent of debt to GDP would be cut in half!!! And contrary to the speaker’s rant, we don’t care who buys the debt, even the Chinese.

Do you remember in early 80′s it was the Japanese who would take over the world, then it was the Saudi’s (or other middle eastern oil sheikdoms). Do you remember too that certain nations, like Germany after WWI and Argentina and Brazil in the early 70′s “monetized” their debt? Sovereign nations can do that. Sure some stuff will cost more (and no, I don’t advocate that we take it to the extreme that either Germany or Argentina did), but guess what? It is almost unanimous among economists that inflation is a good thing- to a certain extent. And currently, the US has NONE!!! You need some inflation for growth and to stimulate job creation!

We need growth in this country and fast and if we manage to explain the reasons to a majority (51% will do), we will avoid a cataclysmic financial disaster. The logic of the comedian has taken over in the EU and the “austerity” measures in Greece and to a lesser extent in Spain, Portugal, Ireland and perhaps to a lesser extent in Britain and France and Italy will lead to slower growth, less government revenues, more unemployment (citizen misery) and what economists call a death cycle. It has happened before and as recently as 1938 in the US.

I am thankful that there are people out there like Obama who do get it. Problem is that we need to somehow prevent those that feel downtrodden to vote and act contrary to their best interests.

I used to hear investment clients say they wanted time to “research” my recommendations to them. After all, Chuck Schwab has been telling them for years, that a few minutes online at the Schwab website and they will be financial geniuses. My response was always the same . . .

Do you really think that you can gain sufficient knowledge of the subject to form a reasonable opinion in a few minutes of research? I have spent 6 years of college studying finance and economics (SDSU finance and GGU MsF) and now almost a lifetime in the financial markets. Are you suggesting that Facebook or Google can answer to that?

I don’t want to be harsh. We will talk more later.

is often cited as the best book ever written about market psychology. This edition includes Charles Mackay’s account of three infamous financial manias – John Law’s Mississipi Scheme, the South Sea Bubble, and Tulipomania. These three historic episodes confirm that greed and fear have always been the driving forces of financial markets, and, furthermore, that being sensible and clever is no defence against the mesmeric allure of a popular craze with the wind filling its sails. Charles Mackay proved himself a master chronicler of social as well as financial history. Blessed with a cast of characters that covered all the vices, gifted a passage of events which was inevitably heading for disaster, and with the benefit of hindsight, he produced a record that is at once a riveting thriller and absorbing historical document. A century and a half later, it is as vibrant and lurid as the day it was written. For modern-day investors, the moral of the popular manias scarcely needs spelling out. When the next bubble comes along — be it stock market, real estate, or tulips — be advised to recall the plight of some of the unfortunates on these pages, and avoid getting dragged under the wheels of the careening career bandwagon yourself.

I’m sorry if you found us . . . odds are it means that you or someone close to you has been been impacted by America’s ongoing financial nightmare and are incredibly distressed. I started this blog to help maintain my sanity as I tried to save my home from foreclosure.

It was also started with the hope that one or more of my favorite crime shows would pick up stories and air them as a “Queen For A Day” fundraiser for families . . . you know: “Save A Home Today” by voting for the family you think needs/deserves the most help. TV and movies have the power to help people through these messes. Incredible TV episodes and movies HAVE been aired addressing lending fraud, but none, that I know of, have directly helped anyone with their mortgage mess. TV spends far more time playing with bachelors and hoarders.

I’m 2.5 years into working to save my home from foreclosure. After two years of battle, and an 8-inch thick 20 pound binder, I was accidentally given a 5-year loan modification.

“Accidental” meaning that after all paperwork was signed, my lender tried to rescind the offer. I took the paperwork to an attorney; he supported my premise that it was a legal and binding document. The lender wiggled but I do have a modification.

Since I seem to have some breathing room, I thought I would take time to give you some notes on what I did to survive this nightmare of fraudulent forbearance agreements and fear of foreclosure during forbearance periods, which is NOT uncommon.

I wrote my way through cancer, so I am writing my way through this, along with volunteering with Marin Family Action to help others save their homes.

When I was laid off from my real estate marketing job in 2009, my life became an ongoing attempt to control my own thoughts and fear so I would not go crazy; volunteering and trying to help others made a huge difference in maintaining balance; I was not alone by a long shot.

Years ago, during drug experimental days in San Francisco’s Haight Ashbury, a friend suggested I could stay balanced with classes and tapes of Yoga. He was serious. I started classes which kept me fit and out of psychological trouble through renewed strength and a sense of peace. Of course, given that I’m from San Francisco, we also joined Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation crew and practiced Zen meditation for hours on end. All of this stuff works!

Because I could not get work after 40 years of full time employment, I had to retrain myself in something. I happen to like computers and working from home, so I opted for Starting and Operate My Own Home-Based Business by taking online courses. I couldn’t afford to attend school. Because of the Internet, online learning is easier to do now than ever.

For any business, you need to know Marketing on a Shoestring.

If you have a family and can’t leave home, or don’t have the funds to take courses outside of your home, consider online learning. Online learning does work and during these times you may have to reinvent yourself. Dust off your dreams; see if you can put together a future that is appealing rather than frightening.

A note of caution, please consider carefully, especially if your dream career is photography. Yes, it is a seemingly “romantic” career path. It is also an extremely difficult one because everyone with a tiny camera or cell phone is shooting these days. If you don’t need income (and I’m assuming you wouldn’t be on this site if you don’t), this is a rough road.

I was a professional photographer and won a couple of awards; however, my daughter, who is a banker, has an exceptional eye for composition. Shots from her cell phone often equal or exceed what I take with my “professional” cameras. (The photo above right was taken with her cell in a very dark chapel in Greece.) Photography, like Web design, carpentry, database administrator, accountant, etc. takes a great deal of skill. None of those skills are random.

That link up there will also take you to business classes; if you have never taken, say, a financial planning course or never developed a business plan for a start-up, I highly recommend either or both. They will serve you well no matter what you do in life.

No matter what you decide to do, ALWAYS have a Plan B, a way out. For years, my car was stocked with a year’s supply of basics;  in my case that included a tent, sleeping bag, backpacking stove change of clothes, flares, first aid kit, etc. It came in part from being a camper, but beyond camping that stuff came in handy repeatedly. It also gave me a strange sense of freedom, as in “I don’t need these people.” And in the case of America’s lenders, that is how I feel. On a brighter side, if I decided I wanted to stay in a coastal campground at a moment’s notice, I could.

My goal when I bought my home in 2006 was to figure out a way to pay off my home within five years; due to illness and job loss I was thrown off track, but I’m getting back on that track now. This link takes you to 900+ products to help you with your emergency preparedness and I truly hope some of this works for you to give you peace of mind as you Battle the Banks.

I will be writing more about what is helping me and others get through this and, again, I hope this helps you find ways to stay calm and WIN!

No matter what your situation in life, always stay on top of your credit. Poor credit will affect everything you do and everything you buy on time, whether it’s a house, car, refrigerator, computer, will cost you more. If you do not know how to handle this yourself, click through to Lexington Law Firm to Clean Up Your Credit Report. Before I started paying strict attention to my credit reports, I had a home loan at 12% at a time when it should have been 7%. I sold that house thinking the payments were too high when all I had to do was reduce the interest by getting my credit report cleared!

I read everything I could find, including Rich Dad’s Advisors®: The Abc’s Of Getting Out Of Debt: Turn Bad Debt Into Good Debt And Bad Credit Into Good Credit and Perfect Credit: 7 Steps To A Great Credit Rating starting in the year 2000. Each book got me closer to living debt free and I was so good at it prior to our current financial crises that I was able to travel to 24 countries around the world.

Because Wall Street caused our current Mortgage and credit crisis, in part due to our lack of their deep financial machinations, many of us are having to climb out yet again. My earlier reading provided knowledge that I would in fact climb out and I’m against just about there. You can get out of debt and stay out of debt with almost any of these books, including The Everything Improve Your Credit Book

If your finances are crazy now and you’re down to the wire with a non-cooperative lender — which IS probably the case if you are trying for a loan modification – and if you have anything resembling equity in your home, you CAN sell your own home. Pulling out as much money as possible without having a significant percentage going to a real estate agent could save you enough to start over elsewhere.

I have nothing against most real estate agents, but times are rough now and you probably need to realize as much profit as possible so that you can keep your life going.

In 2003 when I wanted to sell my home in Fairfax, California, I called the local real estate agents for consultation. They said I wouldn’t get more than $535,000-$560,000 (out of which they would have taken their 5%, or whatever it was at the time). I said they didn’t know what they were talking about.

The location was splendid. The house — actually a 100-year old building that was once the town barn — was built of old-growth redwood. It was solid, it was a duplex, zoned multiple-use . . . meaning one could live upstairs and run a legal business downstairs or rent one unit out and live in the other. The area was high-traffic during the day, quiet at night and within walking of world-class restaurants, a theater, health food stores, bookshops, etc. It was also at the foot of Mt. Tamalpais with its superior mountain biking trails . . . actually Fairfax was the town where mountain bikes were first designed by Gary Fisher.

I ignored the realtors, priced the house at $625,000, put one ad on craigslist.org (the ads are free). I’m quite good at marketing:  I figured the house would be perfect for a young entrepreneur who wanted to start a business, or mountain bikers — who happen to have some of the highest demographics in the U.S. That is how I positioned the craigslist.org ad.

As it turns out, there was a “for sale” sign board near my driveway. Oddly, the “for sale” sign wasn’t even mine — it was for a cute retail gift shop next door.

Within one week, I had two prospective buyers:

1. A young Scandanivan woman who wanted to own her own knitting studio. This would have been absolutely perfect for her; she could live up and run a knitting shop/studio downstairs.
2. Mountain Bikers! (See, I told you.) A wonderful couple from Scotland (who didn’t think 100 years was old for a building) loved the solidity of it, and knew the value of the location — actually, they were riding their mountain bikes down from Mt. Tam when the saw my neighbor’s “for sale” sign and stopped by to inquire.

With two weeks the mountain bikers bought the home. We paid $1,000 to a local real estate attorney who drew up sale papers. I discounted the sales price a bit because no real estate commissions had to be paid.

They are a wonderful couple. He happens to have some background in building and has done wonderful upgrades to the home. They have since had a child and are still living happily in that splendid town in that great old building; I still miss the duplex and wish I kept it.

Again, if you do have to move on, at least consider taking on the sale yourself. This might help:

If you decide to purchase the book and get stuck, please eMail me. I’ll be happy to guide you along at no cost.

Again, if you are in the middle of America’s current financial nightmares with today’s lenders (and their questionable ethics and sloppy business practices) and if you are thinking of selling, consider doing this yourself.

I’m about to try a trade — my three bedroom home for a condo. I have no idea if this will work, but anything is worth a try. At my age, I cannot recover from just walking away from my home; if I could, I would, but I can’t. I am using a real estate agent for this deal and, of course, I’ll update progress on this site.

I hope this helps and my very best to you.

A major bank is now offering an “associate discount program” to their customers.

Just what is an “associate discount program?”

Well, they basically are on-line retailer shops selling items such as books, shoes, luggage, cruises, vacations, etc., via the internet. They are in direct competition with local businesses and they — in this case Bank of America — gets a percentage of everything you buy from their “associate discount program.” Local retailers will lose business as a result of any purchases you make through Bank of America.

Whomever thought of this should be asked “What ARE you thinking?” Or, “Are you thinking?”

Banks are purportedly taking care of our money; they are not an affiliate marketing program/retail gateway for consumers. This program makes no sense from a banking institution — are you really that hungry/desperate? Oh, don’t answer that — we all are, I suppose.

Why is banking institution allowed to conduct business in such a manner. Affiliate marketing links are consumer gateway, NOT banking products. Again, this puts the bank in direct conflict with various local businesses that are their clients.

Wouldn’t it be more appropriate for today’s banks/lenders to run their business in more professional “bankerly” manners, as in paying attention to the millions of fraudulent real estate loans handed out in the past 4-6 years.

Due to poor lending practices by banks, by the time all is said and done, more than 60 million people will have been displaced in America — that is more forced movement than any time in the recorded history of the world from any source, including war, persecution, hurricanes, floods, fire and earthquakes.

PLEASE get back to what you are supposed to be doing, which is managing money, not selling retail products through affiliate marketing programs.

If this particular lender proceeds with this instead of managing its business, we need to complain to appropriate authorities, i.e. Federal Trade Commission, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Office of Thrift Supervision, etc.

I even like the particular bank “offering” this “service,” but this is way out of line and I was in court just yesterday with a woman trying to save her home from this very bank . . . the court ruled in the woman’s favor due to lack of responsiveness from this lender.

Rather than helping customers, they are setting up affiliate marketing programs to further make money from their clients and to compete with local retailers.

A significant number of our families who are facing home loss by the agents of lenders are America’s senior citizens; these individuals are the very people who have spent 40 or 50 years working and paying taxes to underwrite our society, including underwriting the recent bank bailouts.

Emotional abuse includes: “Subjecting an individual to fear, isolation or serious emotional distress.”

Few things are worse than losing your home, particularly one you have been in for decades. Emotional abuse also includes “Verbal assaults, threats or intimidation.”

One of Marin Family’s Action’s members (image right) was taken from her home, handcuffed and sent to the county jail. This woman is A 74-year-old California native with degrees in economics and welfare from University of California at Berkeley. No notice was given. Earlier that week her pacemaker was replaced.

When asked what it was like to be in jail, she said she was “stunned as the reality of my circumstance had not yet sunk in.” Because her pacemaker had been replaced earlier that week, stress was to be avoided. Her arms were already bruising from rough handling and handcuffs “All I could do is wait. There is nothing to do, no means to go to the bathroom. I sat handcuffed.” The nurse checked her pulse: 195 over 97, pronounced the pulse rate “okay” and asked if the bruises on Mary’s arms were “needle marks.”

Elder abuse covers several areas. We are working with groups that focus on abuse as relates to one’s home and loss of one’s home through predatory lending, through lack of cooperation with homeowners with regard to loan modifications, home improvement scams, and illegal fees paid to individuals professing to be able to help with home loan modifications or restructures.

The State of California is quite clear on definitions of elder abuse. Their 39-page citizens guide may be important if you or someone in your family is a senior citizen and is being subject to harrassment by lenders — this includes loan modification agreements that are ignored by lenders and lenders’ agents.

Financial Elder Abuse: Financial abuse is the theft or embezzlement of money or any other property from an elder. It can be as simple as taking money from a wallet and as complex as manipuating a victim into turning over property to an abuser.

This form of abuse can be devastating because an elder victim’s life savings can disappear in the blink of an eye, leaving them unable to provide for their needs and afraid of what an uncertain tomorrow will bring.

California has designated $25 million to help senior individuals for elder abuse:

Anyone age 65 or older, who is suspected of being abused or neglected, is eligible for APS without regard to income. If you suspect that an elderly or dependent adult is being abused or neglected, call your local adult protective services.

America’s working men, women — and often children — shaped this country into the great place that it is (was?).

Why aren’t we being protected? How did we become “the enemy” and “inconvenient?”

We are being “internally displaced” (meaning having to move within our own country) and our displacement rivals or exceeds international numbers:

• 2009, Sri Lanka: 300,000 war-displaced Tamils forced into camps;
• 2009, Yemen: 150,000 people fled fighting;
• 2009, Sudan: 250,000 displaced;
• 2009, Georgians: 192,000 displaced (Moscow, Reuters);
• 2008, Columbia: 380,000 forced off their farms by guerillas, paramilitaries or drug traffickers;
• 2008, World: 4.6 million from armed conflicts;
• 2008, World: 20 million displaced because of natural disasters such as flooding, earthquakes and storms.

Unfortunately History Does Repeat Itself

It is time to stand up and be heard.

"If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem." — Eldridge Cleaver

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” — Edmund Burke

"Justice is itself the great standing policy of civil society; and any eminent departure from it, under any circumstances, lies under the suspicion of being no policy at all.” — Edmund Burke

From Leo Tolstoy, one of the world’s greatest writers:

"Government is an association of men who do violence to the rest of us."

"I sit on a man’s back, choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for him and wish to ease his lot by all possible means – except by getting off his back."

"If you want to be happy, be."

"In all history there is no war which was not hatched by the governments, the governments alone, independent of the interests of the people, to whom war is always pernicious even when successful."

"In the name of God, stop a moment, cease your work, look around you."

More than 200 families are working with Families Fighting Foreclosure to save their homes in Marin County, California. The sponsoring Group Marin Family Action has just been featured in the beginning of a series from Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper, the Pt. Reyes Light.

The Penguin Guide To The United States Constitution: A Fully Annotated Declaration Of Independence U.S. Constitution And Amendments And Selections From The Federalist Papers

One of the strengths of the group is “The Buddy System.” No one goes to court alone when facing opposition from attorneys, lenders, and courtrooms. The group has been shocked at all turns by how sloppy and/or lazy some judges run their courtrooms.

The latest story is of a woman whose husband took out a second on their house without her knowledge. He died shortly thereafter, leaving her confused and about to lose her home from foreclosure. She tried repeatedly to find out what happened, to no avail.

This writer — who has been battling to save her home for 18 months — was in court during one of these legal proceedings (and thinks “illegal proceedings” might be a more appropriate term). The judge pronounced from the bench that “The file is incomplete. I have not reviewed it.” And “It is what it is.” That judge either opened the door for mis-trial, which happened in a round-about way, or she was performing her civic duties in a sloppy manner. It was an appalling view of justice; in fact no justice was going to happen that day if it stayed in the hands of the judge and opposing counsul.

Earlier during the day, that judge told the distressed homeowner that she should prepare to move. She was ready to throw her out of her home of 17 years without knowing any facts and without caring about the facts.

This is being written two weeks after that dreadful Day in Court, and it looks like it is going to have an amazingly happy ending. We’re not at liberty to say yet and the point of this is that you have to be willing to fight or “They” will run over you.

The story about families fighting foreclosure.

If you are here, you may need to Repair Your Credit. If you do not want to take on yet another battle and you are in Marin County, please contact Marin Family Action, a non profit which has been working with housing, financial literacy and credit issues since 1997. If you are not in their area, consider Lexington Law Credit Repair

A proposal: Keep track of every mistake your bank/lender makes. If we do our “homework” with due diligence, you may save your home (if foreclosure is looming) and not only will your finances be in better shape, but we can help banks do their job efficiently and accurately. Why should we? Because their screw ups do NOT cost them; they cost us. Each bank client ultimately pays for the bank’s messes and the only way to straighten this out is to call them on it.

WHY are the keepers of our money allowed to operate carelessly and sometimes outside of the law? Apparently it’s been sloppy for 15-20 years and no one has called them on it. This is our money we are talking about: yours, mine, ours. People work hard only to have their income carelessly handled by banks and lenders. Where is the control over these institutions? Who owns the Federal Reserve? Apparently, no matter who is “in charge,” of America’s lending institutions, they are not paying attention (or are looking the other way for profit/percentages).

Important note: I do not hate banks. They pay reasonably well, still provide benefits (health insurance and vacations), and have a growth plan for their employees . . . including funding for additional schooling. In my 20s, I worked in Bank of America’s Corporate Finance Department in their San Francisco Headquarters under A.W. Clausen and Robert Frick, both of whom rose to prominence in national and international banking. They were fine men. And most bank employees are wonderful people — although, unfortunately, I’m now thinking someone needs to be watching the store because of the multitude of errors made by those wonderful people.

Bank errors are costing you a fortune (as are erroneous credit reports, but that is another story). Start tracking the errors — when they are bank errors and not such things as overdrafts caused by your mismanagement of your own accounts; that IS your responsibility.

Setting the stage: Around 1997, my then-home-loan was sold to Washington Mutual. I wasn’t informed. I sent my payment to the prior lender and it was lost in the transfer process. After ONE YEAR of getting nowhere in straightening this out, I pulled a negative Better Business Report on Washington Mutual. I put on my best business suit and stood outside their Greenbrae, California branch handing them out to people with a suggestion that they read the report before doing business with WaMu. After successfully turning away several people, I explained my process to the bank manager and insisted he straighten out the missing payment mess immediately or I would continue handing out the BBB report. Bristling, he demanded, “Are you threatening me?” Calmly I responded, “No. I’m promising you that I will hand out this negative report re WaMu.” He cleared the record while I waited. Technically, I should have taken that further; because of the resulting poor credit report due to the lost payment, my home loan interest was higher than it should have been.

More setting the stage: In 2007 and 2008 Wells Fargo Bank lost payments on my home loan. Because of the WaMu fiasco, I began tracking all conversations and letters to/from Wells Fargo.

When the mortgage payments did not clear my account, I called Wells who informed me they did not have the checks. So I paid by phone with their assurances that they would NOT put through both payments should they find the missing checks. However, they found the “lost” payments and put both checks through. The result: $580 in overdraft fees. In 2007 I let the overdrafts go as it takes too much time to deal with bank mazes. However, in 2008, I’d had it: It took almost a month, several phone conversations and five letters to straighten this out. They reversed the overdrafts for 2007 and 2008; however, a great deal of time was spent in cleaning up their mistake. Of course, I wasn’t covered for that.

In December 2008, when I began “negotiating” for a loan modification with Wells Fargo, I began tracking all conversations and letters and now have a four-inch-thick binder and nine typed pages of who said what to whom. I’ve learned far more about banking than I ever wanted to know.

So, back to the list you should keep and the whys of it all: On December 28, 2009, curious about the volume of mistakes made by Wells Fargo since they have held my mortgage beginning July 2006, I started counting from my lists of who said what to whom.

As near as I can figure there are TWENTY-ONE errors during the past year alone. Wells’ mistakes include repeatedly lost documents resulting in denials, misinformation during telephone conversations, two outright lies (one before a Superior Court Judge and one in writing in response to a Congressional Inquiry) . . .

I’m not alone. This IS how banks are doing business – sloppy, as is indicated by my timeline, conversations with others, checking blogs with complaints about various banks, and as indicated by the loss of original mortgage papers for thousands (millions) of people.

However, hope springs eternal:

From a Wall St. Journal article written by Amir Efrati on December 24, 2009: “Now, after the country has been mired in a housing crisis for more than two years, more judges are calling these companies on their paperwork glitches, and in some cases going much further in their efforts to help homeowners.”

and

“It makes sense for judges to demand that mortgage companies follow the rules to the letter if they want to win foreclosure cases in court, says Raymond Brescia, an assistant professor at Albany Law School who has written about the role of the courts in the financial crisis. ‘I don’t think that’s a crazy idea,’ he says. ‘To expect plaintiffs to prove their case is what the judicial system is founded on.’”

SO PLEASE keep a list of your dealings with your banks, lenders (and the credit reporting agencies). For decades I considered these bastions of industry as sacrosanct; I actually thought credit reporting agencies were government agencies. They are not, and, like the banks, they hold your financial life in their shaky hands.

Never afraid of anything in my life, I am now afraid of our mortgage lenders and our banking system; they have too much control, do not manage it accurately or efficiently, seem to have no checks or balances, and can take our homes without having to prove ownership. They have also quite studiously ignored Presidential requests.

In December 2009, I received a three-month forbearance offer. This is wonderful, except that too many forbearance offers disappear into thin air as your lender does not hold the note, has no authority to negotiate anything, and after the three months may foreclose anyway — that IS happening in California.

One of Wells Fargo’s own branch managers expressed worry about this “offer” when I stopped by to give the wonderful news. The manager suggested that I track payments carefully and confirmed what I already know: “Horrible things have happened.”

I love my home and country, and Wells Fargo was a favorite bank of mine until this mess. Because of their history in California, Wells is featured on one of my Web sites (although I’m contemplating taking the time to remove all mention of them from the site), and two of their horses — Molly and King — live in my home (the stuffed ones, not the real ones). This is SO sad.

This is amazing. I saw Chase’s new site at Keeping Your Home.

Chase’s complaint record is not good — 282,000 as compared to Wells Fargo’s 300+ thousand and BofA’s numbers. Interesting ’cause Chase is not a top home lending institution and does not hold a comparable number of mortgages, so this indicates that they are in bad shape. Chase’s site HAS to be all PR, but it’s excellent PR, unless, of course, you can read through PR and its purpose. Chase rolled out earlier in 2009 on the West Coast of the Americas with a lame ad. Now they have nicely captured a face of America, albeit they are catering to Hispanics.

In any case, Chase will go on the list I contact re helping in Marin. And here’s a test I will try: “Concerned about paying your loan?” Of course, this refers to Chase, WaMu or EMC, however, I am going to test them. They do hold my second and they were polite when I first freaked about finances in December 2008. I’ll call Chase to see if they will take over the first and the second at 5% for 30 years fixed. What the hell. Chase says they have helped 750,000 foreclosures . . . I absolutely do NOT believe that . . . or perhaps their definition of “help” should needs defining.

I want to write a book entitled “You Can’t Tell Us Apart, Can You?” referring to “white” America. This because I am German Jew and Irish Catholic and do not relate to subjects of the Queen of England or the King of Spain, at certainly not any nation Denmark-north.

And because I often wonder what blacks, Hispanics, Iranians, Indians, etc. know about America and immigration. I decided early on that they most people are caught up in their own strife, don’t know, and don’t care much about anyone else.

A friend/associate, whom I adore, said this morning that it seems like we are fighting the Civil War, but admitted that he does not know what the Civil War was about. I explained that the North (under President Lincoln) wanted to abolish slavery, while the South wanted to maintain the black slaves and cheap labor for their plantations. He said, “Oh.”

What many people do not know is that plantations in the South and various Caribbean islands were also “maintaining” Irish (and probably other) “indentured slaves.” Indentured, of course, meaning once you pay off your debt you were free, however you could never pay off your debt so this was a lifetime commitment.

Bizarre what potentially losing one’s home digs up, don’t you think? My family has been in America since 1704 and here I am fighting for my rights. Absolutely bizarre.

A current favorite racial comment — this from a TV drama: The Iranian man said, “We can’t go anywhere. We can’t travel through airports. We can’t travel on subways. You look at us with suspicion at all turns. You check us for bombs.”

The black New York cop responded, “Yeah, but you can get a cab.”

Through Marin Family Action, a woman’s home was just save from foreclosure proceedings which would have started Monday, December 21, 2009!

THE STORY

My country, ’tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims’ pride,
From every mountainside,
Let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,
Land of the noble free,
Thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture thrills,
Like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,
And ring from all the trees,
Sweet freedom’s song;
Let mortal tongues awake;
Let all that breathe partake;
Let rocks their silence break,
The sound prolong.

Our fathers’ God, to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
With freedom’s holy light;
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God, our King.

One of the greatest things about America is that you do have a voice. Individuals have made a difference and can continue to make a difference. If you are like me, you won’t want to because you don’t like to make waves and/or because you are scared of repercussions.

However, silence will be interpreted as “everything is okay.” It isn’t.

Our recommendation: Blog! Here is a link to Wells Fargo/Wachovia Corporate Blog

Ignore their sales messages; of course, they are informing you that you are to “keep using your debit card and credit card just as you’re doing today . . . ” However, we recommend cutting up your credit cards. All of them! Right now! You CAN live debt-free.

A GREAT ADVANTAGE TO LIVING WITHOUT CREDIT: Since our family got rid of most of our credit cards some years ago and went to an all-cash-basis, we have gone around the world. (We do keep a card for travel and pay it off when we return.) We save for what we want. The only items we buy on time are cars (and even that is a questionable practice) and homes (and we do know people who have saved and purchased cash — not easy in California, but it is possible). The BEST way to get something you want is to save for it and buy it cash. Your savings alone on the interest will probably buy you that luxury item you really want.

Let them know how you feel about their sloppy business practices. Also let them know that you will steer everyone you can away from them. We have easily steered more than $3 million in business that would have gone to Wells Fargo by diverting people elsewhere. That is just through personal conversations and has nothing to do with what this blog is doing. You do have a voice. You can fight back.

In fairness, if your lender does something good, blog on that. There MUST be at least one person who has been treated well, musn’t there? Just one! That would be quite a story.

Other lenders have blogs: Bank of America started one recently, but it is greatly geared towards their future growth. Chase does not appear to have one . . . but there are more than a thousand blog sites expressing their ire at Chase.

If you have urls for other lender blogs, please feel free to include them here.