Of the $70,000 paid to my mortgage companies in the last 6 years, only $2,000 went toward principal. The other $68,000 went toward interest. I don't feel one ounce of guilt.
You should. Shit like what you pull, multiplied by a factor of, oh, a few MILLION, makes it more difficult for the rest of us who, while we do struggle, still manage to pay our bills. Could I walk away from my obligations, file for bankruptcy, and stick someone with the bill (as my ex did to me?) Sure, but ya see, I've got a little more pride in myself, and a little more respect for my fellow citizen.
I don't expect you to do for me what I could and should do for myself. Therein lies the difference between you and me, DUmmies. I honor my obligations out of respect for myself and for those around me. You do it begrudgingly, if at all. Your board is replete with examples of how you'll almost eagerly **** over friends, coworkers, family, even your own children for what you want, what you think you're entitled to without having earned it.
One EARNS the privilege to own a home in much the same way one earns the privilege to drive. Don't show the proper respect and maturity, you don't get to play, or you have to pay a lot more to level the playing field to cover for your ****-ups. Interest only in 2005, and you didn't see the shit storm that was coming? I know how it happened--because my ex did the same exact ****ing thing: bought too much house with a bullshit mortgage which only could have been covered had the housing market kept on with an unsustainable boom that by 2005-06 was already starting to fade. You didn't have the FICO score to buy your home with a conventional loan, so you bullshitted your way (with your broker's help) into something rather than wait, because like petulant little children, it didn't matter that you couldn't manage to KEEP the house, all you saw was what you wanted RIGHT ****ING NOW.
So now you, like my ex, are either stuck waiting for a repo order or have walked away from a home you knew deep down you could never afford, and flooded a market which you never should have been involved with in the first place. Your credit is shit, but worse than that, you've ****ed over everyone around you by screwing over housing values for people who HAVE played the game by the rules, only to find that the equity they had in their homes is now pretty well ****ed. Home prices in places like Las Vegas won't return to 2005 price levels by 2030. That's right, assholes--20 ****ing YEARS. Even my area which has gone pretty much unscathed, relatively speaking, still has taken a hit. My assessed value has dropped by 15 percent since I bought my house. Even with everything I've put into it, I'd be lucky to break even. Thankfully, I'm not considering moving or selling anytime soon.
Oh, and DUmmie? I also did a 100 percent loan, but through my credit union. No second, no PMI, 5 1/2 percent, no intention to refi as I wouldn't save enough and I really don't want to take on a 15-year loan at this point. I've probably paid close to $60K interest in the last 5 years, but my principal has gone down about $20K. Gee, maybe if ya'll hadn't done that interest-only scam....