Why would anyone take out an ARM at 10+%?

Question

The media keeps blaming banks for offering these loans (rightly so), but I have yet to hear ONE liberal question the individuals who were dumb enough to get themselves into a situation they could have predicted. I advised a friend not to take out an ARM (then he borrowed 100K for improvements!!!), and now that he is losing his house, he wants to blame everyone else. This is a man who graduated from college.

Hey, Yodas, smart people took out these loans, as well. Have you seen the News? They took a risk believing the market would continue to soar. Of course, anyone trying to make a profit is evil.

So, Yodas, then you agree it was a risk that was willingly signed by an individual?

Yodas: So what you mean is that YOU/Government want to decide what's good for people. Way to use an extreme comparison. The Democrats in my city (there are only 3,000 Republicans) are the same way. They decide who gets what, and we have a 33% poverty rate because of it. Businesses and people are leaving because the government controls their lives. It does not seem very LIBERAL to me, and certainly is a total failure.

Yodas: Interesting that you say that because all I hear from Liberals is how this is Bush's fault. It's in the editorial pages, on Political shows, and here. The Libs want regulations (as if losses and profits don't regulate).

Answer 1

You are evil and greedy for wanting to make people take responsibility for their irresponsible and stupid decisions. [kidding]

Sadly, too many people think government should protect them from their own stupidity, greed, irresponsibility and carelessness, and that they should be able to take other peoples' money [in the form of taxes] to pay for their own mistakes.

And that is just plain wrong!

[Interestingly enough, I, too, have a college educated friend who lost his house last week, same situation, same blaming of everybody else for his predicament. I've been telling him for 4 years to sell the house, because he couldn't afford it, but he and his wife kept expecting a miracle to happen or something. Idiot.]

Answer 2

Why is this a LIBERAL bashing question??? It was the idiots running the country that allowed stupid people to take out those loans in the first place. With your rationale, all drugs and anything bad for you should be LEGAL so that stupid people have access to them. A 10% ARM is a kiss of death, but liberals, conservatives, and anyone else that's desperate with a low IQ is going to bite.

To respond to you, anyone who takes that much risk is NOT smart. I wouldn't have done it with a 99% chance it WOULD soar. . . . . ..

Response 2: Of course it was willingly taken out by an individual and yes, that individual is to blame. However, just because something is bad for you, doesn't mean it should still be made available for people who are complete idiots. Cocaine is illegal for obvious reasons. Cyanide is a controlled substance for obvious reasons. Etc.

Response 3: I'm sorry you feel like this is a bi-partisan issue because it isn't. I wasn't trying to protect liberals, I just don't think it's fair to point them out. As most of the others answered below, you can't blame libs or cons for this. Since before the United States was a country, the Central Banking systems have used as many tactics as possible to enslave the masses into debt. Our forefathers who started this country didn't want a central bank at all! THEY wanted to protect us from this kind of crap. So, you can blame "liberals" all you want, but if Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson wanted us to be free of these kinds of idiotic loans, well, I guess they'd disagree with you too.

Answer 3

I am not sure why you are making this a a partisan question. People willingly take on debt from a banking system that is in no way regulated by the government (as the federal reserve set interest rates and they are an independently private body).

He willingly took on a high interest debt, and now he is paying the consequences for his lack of foresight, it is unfortunate however it has nothing to do with politics.

Answer 4

People all have different reasons for what they do. A $37,000 house at 10% is still cheaper than paying rent on a house you will never own. Even if the interest rate goes up. I find it funny that these genius' at the banks were happy when they gave these loans and are now getting bit in the a@@. No politics involved though.

Answer 5

Equally both are to blame. The banks should be checking credit ratings before they issue that type of loan and the lender should know there limits and not make improvements totaling $ 100K

Answer 6

why is it illegal to sell fake drugs to people?

because both the stupid people being preyed upon and the evil predatory capitalists are equally to blame. the one needs the other to function, either educate the stupid or penalize the predators.