Why won't banks and mortgage companies do themselves a favor and temporarily stop foreclosing on people's homes? They are only screwing themselves by foreclosing on people right now, so why not rework the mortgages with the homeowners so banks can still receive payments and people can still keep their homes?
I mean, business wise, the only real reason to foreclose on someone's home is so you can sell it to someone who can make the payments, but there's really no one to sell foreclosed homes to right now.
If banks take people's homes because the owners can't afford the rates, but the banks can't sell the homes to anyone else, it seems rather idiotic to take away the product from their only customers. The best option would be to rework the mortgages in order to keep their cutomers. Rework mortgages so people who own them can afford to make payments. Afterall, a bank owning a home but not being able to sell it is of no benefit to the bank whatsoever, especially since home values are falling, so why not think outside the box and do something out of the ordinary like reworking mortgages? Good businesses aren't afraid to adapt to the changing environment, but it seems to me lenders have forgotten this key part of business.
Extend mortgages another 5 or 10 years so people can make lower payments, combine this with lower interest rates and MAYBE revalueing previously purchased homes at what they are worth today, you have a win-win situation for both the bank and the homeowner. The banks would still have money coming in from these properties, DEFINATELY more money than they would by foreclosing on millions of homes that can't be sold, and the homeowners would still have their homes. Not to mention extending someone's mortgage would mean more interest for the bank in the long-term, so ultimately they would make a little more money than they would if they A)kept the mortgages the way they are now and B)foreclosed on the home. Smaller, extended payments are always better than no payments at all.
Am I completely missing something here or would this not help to partially alleviate some of our current problems?
I mean, business wise, the only real reason to foreclose on someone's home is so you can sell it to someone who can make the payments, but there's really no one to sell foreclosed homes to right now.
If banks take people's homes because the owners can't afford the rates, but the banks can't sell the homes to anyone else, it seems rather idiotic to take away the product from their only customers. The best option would be to rework the mortgages in order to keep their cutomers. Rework mortgages so people who own them can afford to make payments. Afterall, a bank owning a home but not being able to sell it is of no benefit to the bank whatsoever, especially since home values are falling, so why not think outside the box and do something out of the ordinary like reworking mortgages? Good businesses aren't afraid to adapt to the changing environment, but it seems to me lenders have forgotten this key part of business.
Extend mortgages another 5 or 10 years so people can make lower payments, combine this with lower interest rates and MAYBE revalueing previously purchased homes at what they are worth today, you have a win-win situation for both the bank and the homeowner. The banks would still have money coming in from these properties, DEFINATELY more money than they would by foreclosing on millions of homes that can't be sold, and the homeowners would still have their homes. Not to mention extending someone's mortgage would mean more interest for the bank in the long-term, so ultimately they would make a little more money than they would if they A)kept the mortgages the way they are now and B)foreclosed on the home. Smaller, extended payments are always better than no payments at all.
Am I completely missing something here or would this not help to partially alleviate some of our current problems?