[o-n-money]

At one point, 19% of mortgages handed out did not make the 1st payment.

[SaveFerris]

[At one point, 19% of mortgages handed out did not make the 1st payment.]

Woohoo! They were 81 for 100!

(just kidding)

[Beagle8U]

“At one point, 19% of mortgages handed out did not make the 1st payment.”

Pointing that out is racist./sarc

[zeestephen]

Re: “At one point, 19% of mortgages handed out did not make the 1st payment.”

Wow. I had no idea.

During the final year or two, before the great crash, they were writing mortgages that required you to pay ONLY the interest for the first three years - no principal payments at all.

The financial theory behind that suicide pact?

Home prices were rising 7% to 10% a year.

After three years, price inflation would “gift” you 20% equity in your home.

Then, you could re-finance into a standard 20% down payment mortgage with much lower interest rates.

My Black neighbor, across the hall from me in our apartment house, was earning low six figures recruiting and referring other Black people for mortgages.

He explained all this to me months before the crash, and at the time, I had no idea what he was talking about.