DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The home foreclosure crisis generated by subprime lending continues to get worse by the day. The trouble started a few years ago when mortgage interest rates dropped to staggering lows and low-income buyers could purchase a home with the help of a subprime loan – despite their lower credit scores. Today, those rates have skyrocketed up to 12-13 percent, leaving those buyers, and often, first-time home owners, few options. As a result, foreclosure numbers continue to climb.
“If you do the math on a $130,000 house, a $900 per month payment suddenly increases to $1,300 per month,” Jim Ross, president of Total Debt Services (TDS) said. “Most people are living day-to-day, trying to pay higher heating bills or higher gasoline bills, and they simply cannot pay the extra $400 each month. People often stop paying credit card bills and car notes just to save their homes – essentially putting them in even more trouble.”
And because the housing market is in a downturn and the high loan to values allowed on these loans, selling the house isn’t an option either since they aren’t going to get what the house is worth and closing costs alone can be in the thousands of dollars. Hardest hit are borrowers in states like Texas and Michigan, which led the country in the number of new foreclosures in 2006. National and state lawmakers are currently drafting bills in an attempt to stop the bleeding, but Sandra Braustein, director of the Federal Reserve’s division of consumer and community affairs said problems with subprime mortgages could last for another two years.
This disturbing trend has highlighted the importance of debt-settlement programs in the United States. With the help of one of these programs, people can often pay about one-half of the minimums on their credit cards, freeing up additional money to put toward the mortgage and keeping them out of bankruptcy.
“The natural reaction is to let your credit card and other payments slip in order to keep your home,” Ross said, “but all that does is put you into even more financial troubles. If you enlist the help of a debt-settlement program and address your credit problems, there’s a good possibility, depending on a number of variables, that you could save your house and eliminate your debt at the same time.”
About Total Debt Services
Total Debt Services (TDS) is a consumer debt settlement company located in Dallas, Texas. TDS is committed to helping clients free themselves from the anxiety of overwhelming credit card debt. The company offers consumers guaranteed debt-relief programs for eliminating or reducing their unsecured credit card or loan debt. Our debt Negotiation and debt Settlement programs provide credit card debt relief as an alternative to traditional bankruptcy, consumer credit counseling, debt management and debt consolidation loans, including credit card debt consolidation programs.
