Reply #193: Well, I've read just about all of this lovely thread

[shrike]

And have a few comments to make:

I've worked with a few people who run food pantries, and it's not uncommon for "affluent" people who've had a run of bad luck to use them. (Pantries often rely on donated items.) Most people in those circumstances are far too embarrassed to admit to anyone that they use them. After reading the comments on this thread alone (there's another one going on the Money Boards at Msn.com) I can understand why. Given the state of the country today, I wouldn't be surprised if this woman gets death threats.

As for her and her husband "helocing" their home, am I the only one who remembers that a few years back, this was the thing to do? EVERYONE was telling us to make use of the equity in our homes. Put it in the market: you get a tax shelter AND make money; everybody wins. Consolidate your debt: HELOCs are tax deductible, after all! It'd be insane to pay non-deductible interest, right? So get that HELOC. And while you're at it, take that nice vacation, finance that car. I remember some schmoe on national TV stating that untapped equity in the home is like "keeping money in your mattress."

And for the "if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you do it" crowd, I myself did NOT do it. I own my home free and clear, thank you. And have retirement assets worth about $260K (I'm in my forties), but that's beside the point. I'd bet any amount of money that the same schmoes yelling at this woman for being reckless and stupid would have admonished ME a few years back for not "utilizing my equity." Quite a few of them would have been DUers, I think. What a dummy you are, you could be making money off that house. Reducing your tax burden.

I'm so cynical now after eight years of Bush that I have to think that this drumbeat of borrow, borrow, borrow, mortgage, mortgage, HELOC came about because of all the MONEY to be made selling, re-selling mortgages, mortgage securities, bundling mortgages, etc. Just reading about it makes me dizzy. NOW they're going to tell us we need to tighten our belts, that it's all our own fault, and we happily beat up on some (probably) shallow yuppie woman who owns Tiffany bracelets. Never mind that someone (upstairs) got awfully rich, we'll al just turn on each other. We always do.

My fellow Americans are such suckers sometimes.