Subprime Mortgage Meltdown
Posted on May 26th, 2008 by ecthompson
There is a simple explanation for this meltdown: Greed, deregulation, and more greed. I don’t think that we have seen the worst of these subprime mortgage losses.
There is a simple explanation for this meltdown: Greed, deregulation, and more greed. I don’t think that we have seen the worst of these subprime mortgage losses.
Tags: Economy //

Errington C. Thompson, MD, is a surgeon, scholar, fulltime sports fan and part-time political activist. He is active in a number of community projects and initiatives. Through medicine, he strives to improve the physical health of all he treats...
Copyright © 2008 Where’s the Outrage?.
We saw this programe last night. Lots of discussion. But we concluded that most buyers were ignorant of terms (fine print that no one ever reads), sellers who probably glossed over the details/ didn’t check creditworthiness, and over course the repackagers and bond raters…. what a mess.
I think all parties share some guilt, though. I would never agree to adjustable rate anything!
One thing I hope is that credit rating starts meaning something again. We are too much in debt as a nation.
So debt is good. The loosening of credit has allowed more folks to own a home in the 80’s and 90’s. 10% down instead of 20 or 30%. Credit has allow most of us to own a car. I think that these things were manageable debt.
0% down and ridiculously low payments for a year or two was nuts.
Thanks for your comment.
One commentary said this was the perfect crime. The mortgage brokers knew what they were doing and knew when to get out. The loan officers etc. made huge amounts of money from bonuses and walked away. Unfortunately the good people got pulled in with the bad.