A Dream Foreclosed: Residents of the region are losing their homes in record numbers

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ^ | Monday, June 07, 2004 | Steve Levin and John Beale

[SunnySide]

" unfortunately the local governments and yes even the state government hasn't realized the money's left and scaled themselves back appropriately as well... they just keep spending and running programs like the money's still here, and its not."

That is why monarchies - socialism - communism fails.
The government keeps on spending because it is not their money, no sweat off their noses. They didn't have to WORK for it, invest in it. Pork barrels, talk about job security.
It's so much more fun spending YOUR - OUR money than theirs.

[j_tull]

No improvements, mind you -- we have a well and a septic tank, and do our own snow removal and lane maintenance -- so I'm at a loss as to where the $ goes.

Same thing here in CT, and my taxes are $6600/yr+State Income tax+vehicle exise tax. Unbeliveable.

[AdamSelene235]

Yep. Lousy schools, ignorant teachers -- I finally gave up fighting the system 3 years ago and started homeschooling. I hate paying for something I'm not using.

Its worse than that, you are paying for the destruction of America.

[mtbopfuyn]

the couple didn't realize there also would be more than $1,000 annually in property taxes.

Duh! And double, Duh! Intersting that the article didn't mention how much they owed on their credit cards or how many months behind on their utilities or other outstanding loans/bills. But noooo, it's the big bad mortgage company and the county who's to blame. It's more than evident in that picture of the handful of belongings they loaded into the large U-Haul they haven't a clue how to manage their budget.

[technochick99]

auto insurance

Auto insurance is frivolous?

[mtbopfuyn]

Don't set your sights on TX because our taxes are just as bad and getting worse every day. What I wouldn't give for a little $1000 property tax.

[SunnySide]

"Auto insurance is frivolous?"

Yes it can be if it's for an automobile that one can't afford in their budget. Example, all sports cars and rag top vehicles carry higher insurance coverage for the obvious reasons. If a teenager can barely afford the auto payments, the gas to put in it then he/she certainly doesn't have the money for the high insurance which makes it a frivilous waste when "priorities" in an individuals budget should take precedent instead of their vanity.

[mtbopfuyn]

I'm curios how they got a loan with no PMI or escrow for the taxes..

Exactly. This article is hogwash. It's nothing more than some two bit journalist out to spin a story despite the fact that the true story is more interesting.

[mtbopfuyn]

Ah, that's so nice you bought a hot tub for the llamas. They'll enjoy really enjoy it!

[junkbond]

The bubble is about to pop in Monmouth County. Although the supply of housing remains tight, I can't help but think that higher interest rates are going to cause prices to drop pretty severly. Look at this sight about Monmouth www.monmouthbubble.com

[tiamat]

Llamas are hedonistic creatures!

;-)

[little jeremiah]

Considering that every home and landowner pays property taxes whether they have kids or not, or the kids go to public school or not, your statement isn't sensible.

And we're not even touching the incredible waste of money in the school system, nor the crap they shovel.

[bert]

I don't view this process as a problem. The couple is undereducated, underemployed and reaching way beyond their grasp.

Failure to become educated, basic laziness in a welfare state is the problem.

There is no solution for the problem of self imposed ignorance.

[MarkL]

Could someone actually buy a house without knowing what their payment would be when taxes and insurance were added in? Crikey, I couldn't really get a mortgage for under a Grand a month where I live, and that's before taxes and fees. Good cautionary tale though. The prevailing wisdom is that it's always better to own than rent, but it's not always true.

Something else to consider is that taxes and insurance will always trend upwards... Don't expect them to stay the same over the term of the mortgage. Over the last 10 years, my mortgage payments have increased by almost $180 a month, due to insurance rate and tax increases. Of course, in my case, I made sure to buy a house that I could really afford, one that cost about 1/2 of what the realator told me I could "afford." I wanted to be sure I could get some furniture, and still be able to pay my bills.

Mark

[HostileTerritory]

Schools don't run on air, and any suburb is going to have a large share of houses with school-age kids. All I'm saying is that it's possible to find a level of property taxes where you are probably MORE than covering the cost of educating the kids of your community, and in my experience, $1,000 a year is not even close to above the line.

There are surely mathematical ways of figuring this out. But we can agree that property taxes of $10/year are not going to cover it, while $100,000/year is excessive, so it must be somewhere in between.

[HostileTerritory]

Thanks for the link--I grew up in Middlesex County and have a friend who sells real estate in Monmouth. I'll look it over before deciding whether it's appropriate to forward to him or not. ;)

[HostileTerritory]

Thanks for the link--I grew up in Middlesex County and have a friend who sells real estate in Monmouth. I'll look it over before deciding whether it's appropriate to forward to him or not. ;)

[RightWhale]

Pittsburgh was cheap housing when I lived there, sounds like it still is.

[johnb838]

Yeah, just last week I decided (again) that the houses I could afford as opposed to the houses I could qualify for were not places I felt like staying for the next five years or so.

[softengine]

We'll add Co. to this watch list soon. Its long overdue.

Overpricing and poor materials quality have a place in this alongside the economic factors.