Hi all,

Below is something I researched and wrote for groups fighting foreclosure in Portland OR. Feel free to use it and/or modify it for your area. The idea is to print out the first two pages (one on each side of a sheet of paper) and then let people go to a website for sources.

THE HOUSING CRISIS: WE ARE NOT ALONE

You can’t pay the mortgage or rent without a job. You’re out of work a) because your job was shipped to a low-wage country, and b) because the banks and investment brokers turned healthy economies into gambling casinos.

When their bets turned sour, the politicians bailed out the banks with our tax money. When you lost your job or home, some politicians did nothing. Others called you a moocher. Wall Street, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the European central banks propose to fix the economy by imposing austerity on the people who’ve been hit the hardest—which means cutting wages, pensions, and the social safety net.

But wasn’t the housing crisis caused by people buying homes they couldn’t afford?

No. Some people who’ve lost their jobs can no longer afford homes they purchased when times were good. Others were defrauded by predatory lenders.

Aren’t unions and “entitlement” programs the biggest contributors to unemployment?

No. Where unions and social safety nets are strongest (Scandinavian countries, Switzerland, and Germany), unemployment is lowest.

Anyone who works for a living can transition from homeowner to renter to homeless. All it takes is job loss, disability, a medical crisis—or fraud on the part of the banks.

A short history of Austerity:  For many decades, the IMF was the lender of last resort to “Third World” governments that couldn’t pay their debts to the big banks. The condition was always that those governments would impose austerity measures. This meant scrapping development projects and cutting social programs, pensions, and subsidies for food. Malnourishment and mortality rates went up. Nations that had overthrown dictators were forced to repay the debts of their oppressors, who’d flown off to luxurious exile.¹

While continuing to devour what they can of Africa, the poorer Arab nations, Asia, and Latin America, the banks have now turned to Europe and the U.S.²

Spain: 27.5% unemployment as of 12/1/12. 517 foreclosures per day. 6 million homes sitting empty. The government just bailed out one of the banks with ≈4.5 billion Euros. Per Spanish law, even after they throw you out of your home, you still owe the remainder of your mortgage, plus court fees, plus penalty interest, for the rest of your life. There is no rental market to speak of. After evicted homeowners committed suicide, the government imposed a two-year moratorium on foreclosures for people in “extreme hardship.” This will help only a very small segment of homeowners, as being unemployed isn’t enough to qualify.^{3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

Greece: 26% unemployment. Homelessness up 25% per year in the last 2 years. Suicide up 40%. Although much of the problem results from the rich evading taxes, austerity measures were imposed on the poor: pensions cut; public employee salaries cut as much as 45%. The banks will be bailed out to the tune of $64 billion. The government did impose a moratorium on foreclosures, and banks have restructured loans. Renters got no help, even when pensions or salaries were cut nearly in half. ^{8, 9, 10, 11}

Italy:  10.8% unemployment—a record high for that country. 62% of the homeless report being on the street because of job loss or bankruptcy of their small business. Austerity imposed—public payrolls cut, state health care and investments cut, the age of retirement raised. As a result, the economy got worse.

United States:  Real jobless rate—including unemployed, underemployed, and discouraged—14.4% as of 11/30/12. Over 4 million foreclosures completed since 2007. The elderly are at great risk, with an 800% increase in foreclosures since 1975, because of pension cuts and rising medical costs. Vacant homes are being kept off the market. Rents skyrocketing this year: +12.9% in San Francisco, +5% in Portland. ^{12, 13, 14, 15, 16}

The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) was supposed to help 3-4 million distressed homeowners stay in their homes. Only 1 million received permanent modifications. The rest were told they had too little money, too much money, etc. Now the program has been opened to investors who own up to 4 properties. Oregon passed a law requiring lenders to go to mediation if borrowers request it. Lenders are simply ignoring the law. Congress continues to discuss imposing austerity measures on everyone except the rich. Meanwhile, life expectancy for poor people in this country has dropped sharply—but Dick Cheney got a new heart at taxpayers’ expense, despite being over the age limit.^{17, 18, 19, 20}

The rich aren’t just stealing your homes and savings. They’re eating the years off your lives. The politicians you elected do not have your back. They work for the bankers.

THE PEOPLE RESPOND

On September 17, 2011, the Occupy movement took over Zuccotti Park in NYC. By October 9, the protests had spread to 82 countries. The encampments were eventually removed by police, using batons and tear gas. ²¹  

On November 14, 2012, anti-austerity strikes erupted across Europe. Workers took to the streets in Spain, Greece, Portugal, Italy, Belgium, Germany, France, and the U.K. The police met them with batons, tear gas, and rubber bullets. ²²

Here in Portland, we need to recognize that we’re in all this economic mess together—homeowners, renters, and the homeless. We should demand:

1) Criminal prosecution of the banksters

2) A moratorium on foreclosures

3) Police protection for people, not corporate profits

Need help? Want to get involved? Call 971-266-4311.

^1-22For a list of sources, see this article at www.weareoregon.org.

SOURCES

¹Klein, Naomi, The Shock Doctrine, 2007

²Wolff, R.D., “Austerity: Why and for Whom?,” http://www.rdwolff.com/content/austerity-why-and-whom

³NY Times, “In Spain, Homes are Taken But Debt Stays,” 10/27/10, http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2010/10/28/in-spain-homes-are-taken-but-debt-stays/

⁴NY Times, “A Foregone Foreclosure,” 7/18/12, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/28/world/europe/28spain.html?pagewanted=all

⁵NY Times, “The Don Quixote of the Spanish Crisis,” 8/22/12, http://latitude.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/22/the-don-quixote-of-the-spanish-crisis/

⁶NY Times, “Unemployment in Spain Exceeds 25%,” 10/26/12, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/27/business/global/jobs-data-underscore-rajoys-woes.html

⁷Al Jazeera, “Spain unemployment hits record levels,” 12/4/12, http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012/12/2012124192857939301.html

⁸Washington Post, “Greece’s unemployment rate rises again,” 12/6/12, http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/greece-jobless-rate-up-to-26-percent-as-recession-continues/2012/12/06/1ff8537e-3f93-11e2-8a5c-473797be602c_story.html

⁹International Business Times, “Poverty, Homelessness, and Suicide: Greek Citizens Bludgeoned by Austerity,” 8/24/12, http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/376988/20120824/greece-prime-minister-antonis-samaras-bailout.htm

¹⁰Athens News, “When foreclosure looms,” 7/2/11, http://www.athensnews.gr/issue/13450/44177

¹¹NY Times, “Greek Government and Public at Odds over New Cuts,” 9/5/12, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/06/business/global/greek-government-and-public-at-odds-over-new-cuts.html?pagewanted=all

¹²Portal Seven, http://portalseven.com/employment/unemployment_rate_u6.jsp. This site charts unemployment rates from 2000 to present.

¹³CNN Money, “Foreclosures fall to lowest level since 2007,” 1/18/12, http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/12/real_estate/foreclosures/index.htm. “While the declines seem like good news for the housing market, where a flood of foreclosed homes has depressed home prices, much of it is due to processing delays caused by fall-out from the "robo-signing" scandal that broke in late 2010.”

¹⁴NY Times, “Facing Foreclosure after 50,” 7/19/12, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/19/us/foreclosure-rates-surge-for-older-americans-aarp-says.html.

¹⁵The Oregonian, “Apartment rents rise and vacancy falls in year’s second quarter,” 7/5/12. http://www.oregonlive.com/front-porch/index.ssf/2012/07/apartment_rents_rise_and_vacan.html.

¹⁶San Francisco Examiner, “San Francisco housing market looms bigger than ever,” 7/17/12, http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/2012/07/san-francisco-housing-market-booms-bigger-ever.

¹⁷Aol Real Estate, “Has HAMP Gotten Any Better at Helping Distressed Homeowners?,” 8/15/12, http://realestate.aol.com/blog/2012/08/15/has-hamp-gotten-any-better-at-helping-distressed-homeowners/.

¹⁸Realty Trac, “HAMP Program Opening Up to Real Estate Investors,” 3/8/12, http://www.realtytrac.com/content/videos/hamp-program-opening-up-to-real-estate-investors-7066.

¹⁹The Oregonian, “Lenders not engaging in Oregon foreclosure mediation program,” 8/29/12, http://www.oregonlive.com/front-porch/index.ssf/2012/08/lenders_not_engaging_in_oregon.html.

²⁰NY Times, “Life Spans Shrink for Least-Educated Whites in the U.S.,” 9/20/12, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/21/us/life-expectancy-for-less-educated-whites-in-us-is-shrinking.html?pagewanted=all.

²¹Washington Post, “Occupy Wall Street protests go global,” 10/15/11, http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/occupy-wall-street-protests-go-global/2011/10/15/gIQAp7kimL_story.html.

²²Reuters, “Anti-austerity strikes sweep Europe,” 11/14/12, http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/14/us-spain-portugal-strike-idUSBRE8AD00020121114.