Smith herself has written why:
But servicers have lots of reasons not to go there. First, they get lots of fees upon foreclosure and have organized streamlined processes to make it a profitable activity for them. Second, they are obligated to keep advancing principal and interest when borrowers default. Technically, they can stop when the borrower looks irredeemable, but in practice, they keep advancing P&I until they reach the mortgage balance. So they also are driven to foreclose to recover P&I advances. Third, they are just not set up to do mods. Not only do their contracts not allow for them to collect fees to do mods, but for a mod to have any hopes of success, you need to do some borrower assessment. Servicers are factories, highly routinized, so doing anything on a one-to-one basis is difficult given their operating parameters.
Doesn’t it seem like the fact that MBS investors want servicers to modify mortgages but the servicers won’t do it is a much bigger story than what we’ve gotten from the mainstream press?
I'm having a hard time feeling bad for the good people of Wisconsin. It seems to me they are getting exactly the government they voted for. The majority of Wisconsin voters elected an ideologue who was bought off by billionaires, and their House and Senate at the state level has a majority of totally whacked-out, extremist rightwingers. Evidently, they are there by virtue of winning a fair election. They haven't done much better at the federal level. The voters sent the moderate Russ Feingold packing in favor of a millionaire plastics manufacturer who bought himself a Senate seat, and they are responsible for sending the genuinely looney Michele Bachmann to Washington DC to represent them.
So they pretty much have the government they deserve, and that includes the union members. I'll bet a good number of those cops and firefighters voted Republican. This is what happens when you cast unwise votes "to send a message," or you can't be bothered to pay attention to what you are voting for, or can't be bothered to vote at all. Reality check.
#1 Posted by James, CJR on Fri 25 Feb 2011 at 09:07 PM
RE: "Grand Oil Party"... So, it's not that the federal govt has such cartelizing power; the objection is that the wrong party is exercising it. Is that the rub? Or, maybe, it is as Thomas Jefferson and co. warned: When the federal govt is allowed to absolutely determine the bounds of its own power, it will inevitably and constantly find new powers, which it will gladly employ for or against any preferred or opposed interest.
#2 Posted by Dan A., CJR on Sat 26 Feb 2011 at 10:26 AM
Dan A.,
The world awaits with bated breath
Your claim that taxes equals theft.
Had you another, all would cheer
Yet "taxes/theft" is all we hear.
#3 Posted by edward ericson jr., CJR on Mon 28 Feb 2011 at 01:33 PM
"edward ericson jr.,"
Before I take time to thoroughly respond to your mashing of the English language, you must quote me in reference to the pertinent context. Of course you could respond to my comment on the current thread, though I won't hold my breath. I'll tell you what: while you're crafting your next episode of fact-deficient ankle-biting, I'll leave you with just one morsel of reality to chew on. Monetary inflation is a "hidden tax" — a "transfer of wealth" from low-and middle-income Americans to Wall Street, the MIC, and other govt-connected tax-feeders.
#4 Posted by Dan A., CJR on Mon 28 Feb 2011 at 11:37 PM