Help for Homeowners Facing Foreclosure

November 20, 2008

Everyone seems to agree that flooding the market with empty, foreclosed homes does not help neighborhoods maintain stability – either as a way of living, or regarding the value of homes. Empty homes do nothing for a neighborhood.

Recently some organizations are taking tentative steps to allow homeowners who are defaulting on their mortgage to remain in their homes –at least for the time being.

Fannie and Freddie Mac have announced that they are freezing foreclosure sales until after the new year while they review strategies and the future of their organizations. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. recently announced foreclosure-prevention programs that aim to reduce interest rates, extend repayment schedules and, in the case of Citigroup, reduce loan amounts, to help borrowers keep their homes. But the programs have focused primarily on loans wholly owned by those companies because they feel they have more authority to rework those mortgages.

HSBC is also making more options available to more people. For example, it is contacting customers before their adjustable-rate loans reset to higher rates and freezing the current rate or allowing the borrower to pay a rate below what the new rate would be. The bank also is lowering fixed rates for selected borrowers. All this in an effort to stave of foreclosures.

One way of stabilizing markets where supply exceeds demand is to regulate supply. That way the people who can buy homes can buy from sellers who can’t afford to stay in their current home. But, amazingly enough, new home construction is still going on – even in saturated markets. Merrill Lynch economist David Rosenberg suggests, only half-jokingly, that the Treasury should impose a moratorium on home building. "It sounds like lunacy, but we have to destroy the housing capital stock to help put a floor under the market," he said.

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Local Information for Escondido, CA

Latitude: 33.124794 -- Longitude: -117.08085

Other Area Cities: Escondido Rancho Santa Fe Vista San Marcos

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Escondido is a city located in northern San Diego County, California just north of San Diego, California, USA. The name means "hidden" in Spanish-- it occupies a shallow valley ringed by rocky hills. Founded in 1888, it is one of the oldest cities in San Diego County. The city has a mild climate, a diverse economy and a growing population of 140,766, making it the fourth largest city in San Diego County in terms of population. Downtown Escondido (centered on Grand Avenue) has experienced a renaissance. Numerous fine restaurants, cafes, and galleries have opened over the past few years. Every Friday night from April through September, the Downtown Business Association hosts the popular "Cruisin' Grand," where the public can show and view hot rods and historic cars. A different car club and/or featured attraction (i.e. antique fire trucks, nitro night, midget and sprint cars) is highlighted each week. Cruisin' Grand also features a DJ, hula hoop contests for the kids, and 7 trophies. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

California 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Escondido	California	United States
Population	133,559	33,871,648	281,421,906
Median age	31.2	33.3	35.3
Median age for Male	30.2	32.2	34
Median age for Female	32.4	34.4	36.5
Households	43,817	11,502,870	105,480,101
Household population	131,794	33,051,894	273,643,273
Average household size	3.01	2.87	2.59
Families	31,162	7,920,049	71,787,347
Average family size	3.5	3.43	3.14
Housing units	45,050	12,214,549	115,904,641
Occupied units	43,817	11,502,870	105,480,101
Vacant units	1,233	711,679	10,424,540

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