Because it’s sure not going to help me.
I did the math on this one. Back in 2004 when I bought my condo, I was making about half of what I make now. My mortgage and HOA fees were slightly lower than they are now, but I was paying out 32% of my gross pay for housing. I would have qualified then for the new program.
But 32% of my gross pay for housing was scaring the bejesus out of me and so I motivated myself to earn more. Now, even with an ever rising mortgage payment and HOA fee, I’m only spending 17% of my gross pay on housing. I would be gloating, but I’m not.
Per my 2009 county tax assessment, I am not yet underwater, but if you look at condo listings around my area, I sure am. I have been looking at listings for fun and shopping vicariously for a friend of mine. The one good thing is that I have very low condo fees compared to a lot of other places where I live. I thought mine were high for a place with few amenities, but because I live in an older condo building, we actually have some substantial reserves. A lot of the new, posh, luxury buildings have no reserves and people are paying through the nose in monthly HOA fees to build up reserves. For an extra $1000 a month in my pocket, I’ll stay in my crappy neighborhood, thanks.
So that’s my upside on this, small as it is. I’m screwed left and right by the current situation, but it’s bearable. Very bearable.
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
It’s not going to do a darned thing for me…none of these rescues are…except, of course, raise my taxes.
I’m a renter. I own nothing. Meanwhile, my cost of living is going up, my salary is NOT going up, and at this point…I’m just glad to have a job.
Nope, nary a bit. I guess the upside to not owning anything is not having to lie awake nights needing a bailout to stay in my home, I just have to land a new job to stay in my home.
That’ll do.
We are in a similar boat, except that we are living overseas for a few years and are renting out the house we bought in the States a few years back. Looking at the costs of homes in that area leads to the conclusion that we overpaid (by about 50 grand) on the house, but there is never any insurance that property values will go up, of course. As it stands, we are thrilled to have reliable renters and a place to come back to when our stint over here is completed. Good luck with the condo search for your friend! I can’t believe places are charging 1000 bucks a month in fees, that’s ridiculous.
Jerry
Let’s see, a) I bought my first home in 2006, and b) I live in southern California. Underwater? Definitely. But I can afford my mortgage payments, my job’s quite secure (running my own business and business is actually pretty good) so I’m not stressing too much. Means I can’t move for the next 5 years, but (unless values keep dropping) I’ll be above water in 2 1/2 years. Sucks but hey, could be far worse! And in the meantime, I love having my own place with a garden and hammock in the backyard.
Boo Hoo!