How sad......to lose your "private sanctuary" in such a hostile and violent world. Her husband is apparently "gone" and she felt she had no other solution. A sad story I'm sure we'll end up seeing a lot more of in the future!

How insensitive can the mortgage companies become before they are forced to relent or deviate from their greedy ways? God help us all!

Gary Cummings

What is a 90 year old woman doing taking out a 30 year mortgage anyway?  And what did she do with the money when she closed her loan in 2007? I bet one of her relatives talked her into it. I see that all of the time in my field, the elderly being taken advantage of by some young relative — and then absconding with the funds.

Suzanne

Rae, where do you get 31 years old?  She bought the house in 1970 — that means she was 52. Then 37 years later, in 2007, she took another mortgage at 89. I agree it’s a mess, but the bank should expect to be paid back when somebody takes a loan. A loan is not supposed to be a social service. I agree with Toni on the co-signer idea.

Donna

If you give an elderly person a 30 year mortgage because you are a money-hungry mortgage broker, then the college graduate who allowed the loan to go through, fully knew it most likely will not be paid back. Yes, the loan should be forgiven, but before an old woman has to shoot herself, please! The banking business has zero morals.  

Norman

I am a housing counselor and unfortunately I see this sort of thing all the time. My question is — why wasn't she offered a reverse mortgage if the home was paid for and all this equity was in the home? This would have at least allowed her to stay in the home and not have the worry about making monthly payments. Shame on the person who sold her the loan. Remember you have to answer to a higher authority!

Jon

To all who wonder why the bank approved a 30 year mortgage, the fact of the matter is they had no choice. It is illegal to discriminate in a loan decision based on age. If she otherwise qualified, then the term of the loan was not a factor. She probably needed the 30 year amortization to keep the payments low enough to qualify. Not that the mortgage company was completely blameless. I'm sure they could have counseled her more effectively.

Kevin

There are consequences for your actions. If all you had to do is attempt suicide to escape debt, how many would do that? There is a law that makes age discrimination illegal. If she applies and qualifies for the loan the lender must give it to her without concern for her age. That's the government (again). I want my loans forgiven too! Should I stop paying and get my guns ready?

Paul

I agree with both sides. This lady should never have gotten a 30 year loan at 89 years of age. What was the bank thinking? (They were not — and that's the problem) Just some young desk jockey getting a notice that this loan is paid off so they automatically send out a letter asking for another mortgage on the home and never looking into the situation. Now if the lady went to the bank for a loan (what ever the reason may be) then you can't fault the bank. The only fault is the 30 year loan part. A woman that age can never be expected to live long enough or have the finances to pay this loan back which leaves the burden on the family members. People need to STOP living beyond their means and yes I do believe that the banks should foreclose on a loan in default. I feel sorry for this woman and would not like to see her evicted because I do not know why the loan was taken out, but to all of the people that jumped on the bandwagon of  “Oh I’m going to sell my house for “sooo” much money and get a loan for a bigger house so I can flip it and get even more money,” then I say it’s time to pay the piper. You took a gamble and it did not work out. Would you go to a casino and after loosing say you want your money back? Start living as to what you can afford to pay. If you don’t have the money, then don’t do it. Wait until you have enough, then do it. So you need to wait a little while before you get it. My heart goes out to people on medicine and that takes away so much of their money that they can’t afford other needed items. That should be where the federal funding should go. Lowering the cost of needed medicines would allow people to afford more things and provide a happy and health person.

Yeap

My friend just tried to get a mortgage, and the local bank tried to sell him an option ARM! Luckily, he checked with me first. Why are we paying billions in a bailout, when banks are still doing this? He was never told the risks, just the rewards. They also tried to get him to combine his current low interest loans into the mortgage, which had a higher interest rate. They could have put him in a real pickle, and he would have realized it too late. The tax gains wouldn't have come close to offsetting the losses, at his income level.

Shameful.

After I explained the pros and cons, he was shocked — and very thankful. He won't be as trusting of lenders, after this.

Concerned

To Yeap,

I agree! We heard years ago that this was going to happen. People were warned about the housing crash and rising mortgage rates. Some people I do feel sorry for. ARM's were not suppose to jump this high so quick. Now, people are losing there jobs.

I could have very easily been one of those people. My bank told me I could afford SO MUCH MORE HOUSE. I told them not if we wanted to eat. It is not hard to add bills and everything together, allow for tax increases — and than figure from there what you can actual afford.  

If your ARM was going to be 9.5 percent a year, you should have figured your mortgage at that rate.  AND YES Mortgage companies took advantage of far to many people. And now look where they are!  

 It is absolutely unacceptable that Addie Polk was given a 30 year mortgage at 89 years old. Additionally, Countrywide should have to absorb this write-off and not the taxpayer aka Fannie Mae. Someone needs to hold them accountable!

Ross

Unfortunately, there are all different situations people find themselves in — and some of them can be prevented. For those who have foreclosed due to disabilities relating to sickness and injury, there are insurance policies for Accident and Disability, to keep your income going in the event you are disabled due to an injury (not self inflicted) or sickness that could be detrimental and catastrophic to your financial situation.  

As an insurance agent, I have seen so many situations happen because people do not know there is coverage for these types of situations, or feel that they do not need them until they are faced with it. The lucky few who realize that they need the coverage are the ones that have either seen it happen to someone else, or have had it happen to them before. In this case, I cannot comment because like so many people have stated, her whole story and all the facts have not been disclosed... but I can tell you that if you are concerned about it, talk to an insurance agent about a Disability Income policy that would help prevent the financial repercussions in case it should happen to you. Protect yourself, and protect your family from the things that you cannot predict. You may not be able to predict them, but at least you can plan FOR them.

Melinda

I feel for this old lady. I know how stressful it is to go thru foreclosure. In my case, we almost lost our home due to some illness. I had 6 weeks before the sale date. I applied for a modification using mortgage modification servicing in Florida. They did all the negotiation after I sent all the needed paperwork. It took six weeks, but got it approved, from an 11.7 percent interest rate all the way down to 6.75 percent. It was worth paying them $1,500 for all they have done. Now I’m still in my home — better yet the payments have gone down a lot.

Connie

I really don’t think the little lady should have not had to go to the extreme as to take her life. Thank God she will live, but why does a little old lady have to go to that extreme? Where do you draw the line? Big companies should leave the elderly the heck alone.

Dawn

The lady took out the loan. The banks can't be held responsible for giving her a loan. It is illegal to turn down a loan because someone is old! The fact is that she accepted the terms and less than 2 years later defaulted on the loan. How is that the banks fault and how should they have behaved in the first place? You bleeding hearts would cry if they refused the loan because of her age too! Give me a break!

Doran

Call me naive, but if the original loan was taken out in 1970, and 37 years later another 30 year loan is required, then I believe there is some information that is missing. Something does not add up.   

Mike

It’s easy to say that the bank should have thought twice about giving this lady a loan but one should think before they make that statement. If that is the case, then the banks should have thought about giving all the many people that are in foreclosure today loans. To say that one is living above their means is insensitive. Rather than judge, why don’t we try to find a solution?

Brown

For all who did not read the article, including Jon, Kevin, Paul and Yeap. Her husband bought the house in 1970!

Seriously people, you can't always blame the banks for the bad decisions consumers make. You start blaming the bankers and you have things like Nazi Germany come to pass. How did that start? By blaming the bankers.  

The lady can get a 30 year loan at her age because in this country we do not practice age discrimination. If she was smart and really needed money she should have taken out a REVERSE MORTGAGE. She could have tapped her equity and then stayed in the house until she passed without ever having to make a payment back to the lender.  

It sucks but you have to pay your debts back.

Lender

Yeah, Paul. You are right. If you die after a suicide attempt, I am pretty sure that you don't have to pay up.  Hey, maybe if you sell all of those guns you speak of, you can pay off some of your debt?

Lauren

Um, hey Rae?  I agree with Suzanne. And yes, apparently she did read the article. She bought the house in 1970 and took out a mortgage in 2007...at the age of 90.  He bought the house when she was 42. I don't feel one bit bad about it. The mortgage companies are just doing their job. Does no one see what is happening in the economic world? Mortgage?  Either way you look at it, the bank will probably end up with it anyway.

Stephanie

I meant "52" years of age.  And yes, I also wonder, why wasn't she offered a reverse mortgage?  Either way you look at it, the bank will probably end up with it anyway.

Stephanie

It all comes down to the Democrats support of CRA and predetermined results that would make election 2008 more favorable for them. The Commander in Chief happens to be Republican, so they place the blame on him.

Go McCain — you tried to avoid the housing crisis, the Democratic Majority just wouldn't have it.

I know better

Some people who made comments don’t know how to calculate this lady's age in 1970, when she originally bought this house.

We had a lot to build on in the country. We had the plans — a nice modular (4 bedrooms) picked out. Loans all in order (no balloon payments or anything), but we looked at each other in the 11th hour and sadly agreed that if anything happened we would be strapped and we didn't want to live like that.  

So we sold our lot (our dream) and bought something older, smaller in town. It was just going to be for a few years as he was back in school finishing his degree.  Three and half months later — after moving into this house— he died at 47 and here I am with our three kids. 

Now, where is a good place to go to get solid advice about re-financing (rates, when is it really beneficial and not just for the loan people, how could getting the property tax adjusted down affect things, etc.?) I trusted my husband because he kept our feet on the ground no matter how tempted we were to try to keep up with the "Jones," but now I feel lost, but don't want to waste money if I could improve things.

I have to agree with Jon in this instance. A reverse mortgage would have probably been the smart choice. I don't know if Mrs. Polk has relatives who could have guided her in making a proper choice. I know it's hard. My father is  85 years old and its very hard to talk about finances with him and get him to understand the consequences of his actions. There is no doubt hers was an extreme case. Thank God she's still alive, and thank you Fannie Mae for having a heart. This was a horrible situation, but we've seen others like the couple who turned on the car and gassed themselves to death in the home they were losing to foreclosure. No matter which way you look at it, there's no easy solution here. However, we can't, and shouldn't, bail out everybody who makes a bad financial decision.

joelc

I find it interesting that everyone jumps on the mortgage company for being insensitive.

Other sources are reporting that she ignored all attempts to collect on the debt. Had she called the bank and pleaded her case would it have brought about a different end? We don't know.

But burying your head in the sand will NEVER bring about a different scenario than the worst.

I feel for everyone involved in this horrible situation.

Toby

Instead of bailing out AIG to the tune of $85 billion, I'm in favor of giving $85 billion to America in a “We Deserve It Dividend.” To make the math simple, let's assume there are 200 million U.S. citizens who are18 years old.

Our population is approximately 301 million counting every man, woman and child. So 200 million might be a fair stab at adults 18 and older.

So divide 200 million adults into $85 billion that equals $425,000. My plan is to give $425,000 to every person who is 18 or older as a “We Deserve It Dividend.” Of course, it would NOT be tax free.

So let's assume a tax rate of 30 percent. Every individual 18 and older has to pay $127,500.00 in taxes. That sends $25,500,000,000 right back to Uncle Sam.

But it means that every adult has $297,500 in their pocket. And a husband and wife has $595,000.

What would you do with $297,500 to $595,000 in your family? Pay off your mortgage and the housing crisis would be solved.

You could repay college loans — what a great boost to new grads. Put away money for college. Save it in a bank.

You could buy a new car and create jobs. Or invest it in the stock market; capital drives growth. You could pay for your parent's medical insurance; that would improve health care. It would also enable “Deadbeat Dads” to come clean “or else.”

Remember, this is for every adult U.S. citizen including the folks who lost their jobs at Lehman Brothers and every other company that is cutting back. And of course, it would be available to those serving in our Armed Forces.

If we're going to re-distribute wealth, let's really do it, instead of trickling out a puny $1,000 economic incentive that is being proposed by one of our candidates for President.

If we're going to do an $85 billion bailout, let's bail out every adult U.S. citizen. As for AIG, liquidate it. Sell off its parts. Let American General go back to being American General. Sell off the real estate. Let the private sector bargain hunters cut it up and clean it up.

Here's my rationale. We deserve it and AIG doesn't. IT'S OUR MONEY! Sure it's a crazy idea that can "never work" How do you spell Economic Boom? I trust my fellow adult Americans to know how to use the $85 Billion. We earned the “We Deserve It Dividend” more than the geniuses at AIG or in Washington D.C.

And remember, this plan only really costs $59.5 Billion because $25.5 Billion is returned instantly in taxes to Uncle Sam. Also, a sobering thought a "We deserve it" bailout would cost we tax payers $615,000,000,000 less than another proposed $700 billion big bucks greedy Bailout.

Yes it may be a sad situation as there are many of these around the country. I am in the business of cleaning the homes that have been foreclosed on and have seen many different scenarios played out like this one. I also know that a typical foreclosure happens after about 18 months of non payments, depending on the lender.

There is obviously more to this story as she took the loan out in 2007, and defaulted in 2008. And with them trying to evict her 30 times prior tells me either she is either alone with not much family or she is the stereotypical "stubborn" old timer.

Aaron