Some homeowners may never recover
Some areas were hit so hard that the recent run up in housing prices may not help much at all and will continue to bring economic hardship to some areas for years to come. The disprotionate numbers of people who were steered into predatory loans is shown in this study by the Haas Institute.19.8% of homeowners are still seriously underwater. In 151 zipcodes,there are still 50% of homes upside down. In ca. 18 cities are in the top tier.
The most disgusting fact in all of this is t hat people of color are much more likely to be in this mess. This fact does not seem to be related to income. White people with the same incomes are less likely to be under water. The sleezy banks targeted African Americans and Latinos to drive them into predatory loans more so than their white neighbors. One more reason to hate big banks.
Read the whole study.
