Speedy foreclosures rob owners of equity

| 16/07/2015 | 106 Comments

Cayman News Service(CNS): A group of concerned citizens, many of whom have lost their homes, have come together to raise awareness of what they see as a collusion between realtors, valuers and banks over speedy foreclosures that rob owners of tens of thousands of dollars in equity after just three months of arrears. Members told CNS that as many as 3,000 local properties have been taken by banks in the last three years, but given the shocking speed and ruthless way homes are being auctioned to cover loans with no regard for house values, they say government must now intervene.

As well as the obvious direct loss to homeless families of their house, their equity investment and the consequences of that, the burden will fall increasingly on government to help these people who have now become impoverished because of the over-zealous action of local banks. In addition, the fire sale of many properties is reducing the value of the homes nationwide as foreclosure valuations are absurdly distorted.

Sick woman faces imminent eviction

Following the publication of this news article today, the members of CAEI called CNS to report that a local woman living in Savannah Meadows had received a writ of possession from lawyers Thursday demanding she leave the property immediately despite a stay filed with the courts and hearing set for 24 July. The woman, who is in her sixties and suffering from significant medical problems, is about to be made homeless and has nowhere to go. Campaigners are urging anyone who can assist in helping her remain in her home, at least until the court hearing, is asked to contact the group via their Facebook page (see link below) or call directly on 929-5600.

While people described home loans in Cayman as mortgages, they are in fact demand loans. As a result, the law allows banks to seize homes from families regardless of their circumstances or previous good standing after just three missed payments. The story told by the members of the group about their own circumstances and the others they are trying to help were surprisingly similar.

Most had significant equity and had properties with up-to-date values from the banks that had dictated their costly insurance premiums. But with no negotiation or effort to get the homeowners passed their difficulties, banks are taking properties and listing them for auction literally under the noses of the homeowners within 90 days with price tags that are encouraging a cut throat approach by realtors.

The fledgling group, which is called Caymanians Against Economic Injustice, is lobbying government to address the existing foreclosure legislation and examine the entire regime regarding what they see as a developing scam between the surveyors and valuers, real estate agents and the banks.

While the US government and other western administrations had stepped in with legislation to prevent speedy foreclosure against people caught up in the world economic recession, it appears the rules in Cayman have been adjusted to make it even quicker and easier for banks to take loan holders who miss just three payments immediately to court and list the property for sale.

The newly formed committee has more than a dozen active members and is reaching out to others whose homes are in jeopardy to join the campaign to press government to act. All of them said that their homes were taken after around 100 days, and regardless of the equity or genuine value of the property, the banks significantly undervalued their homes, selling them in many cases for half their worth to recover just loan value only.

The group includes a cross-section of people, including educated, qualified and experienced local professionals, businessmen and former political candidates, all of whom have held prominent positions in the community or served on local boards. The common cause of their difficulties was divorce, sudden serious illness or job loss, leaving them struggling to meet hefty loan and insurance payments for what could have been a temporary financial problem but what became a catastrophe.

Regardless of their previous good standing and history of payments on a home loan, banks are issuing demand letters and moving to foreclose on properties at the 90 day mark, literally forcing families, single mothers, elderly and infirm homeowners onto the street.

Local locksmiths have reported changing locks on foreclosed homes on a daily basis and the court lists are filled with suits from all the high street banks against homeowners. The banks, it seems, are working with real estate agents and listing properties ready for foreclosure auctions after valuers have given ridiculously low values for a reserve price. But the low price tags in most cases match the exact amount of the loan against the home, disregarding the real value of both the house and the land they are on.

In some case people who once had hundreds of thousands of dollars of equity in their property are now destitute, indebted to banks, penniless and homeless.

One prominent community leader, who suffered a bout of serious illness and lost his home as a result, explained that despite being valued by his bank at over $550,000 for the insurance on his loan, his home was auctioned for less than $380,000. He said that was about the value of the land on which the property stood. “The bank sold my land at auction and threw in my house for free,” he said, as he illustrated the ruthless nature of the foreclosures.

He is not alone. The committee related dozens of cases, including their own, where they are trying to help and learn from their own experiences to save homes in the face of the mounting numbers and the lack of action by government.

Although all of them have talked with their various representatives about their own and other cases, they told CNS that the politicians seemed overwhelmed and unsure how to help, as they all appear to have had dozens of representations from constituents regarding families losing their homes.

Taking the first steps towards starting a national discussion about how the issue and other barriers to the economic development of local people can be addressed, the group wants to see sensible legislation to protect homeowners and the value of local property.

Members of CAEI are urging anyone who has lost their home or whose home is currently in jeopardy to contact their group via email

CAEI345@outlook.com

or through the Facebook page 

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Comments (106)

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  1. Jimmy Cathouse says:

    Foreign Bankers foreign valuators Way too many foreign realtors in Cayman real estate market. What part of this Caymanians just don’t understand. Yes and guess who is inflating the prices too! Well Cayman wach you goin do bout it??? besides whine and complain!!!!

    • Anonymous says:

      …they ain’t gonna do shit.

    • Anonymous says:

      Ah ha my friend. In the eyes of the publisher of a certain newspaper and the newly arrived elite in this country, this is just good business or capitalism @ work and certainly not corruption. It’s them sitting back poolside popping open the bottles of bubbly.

      When the poor have nothing left to eat, they will eat the rich.

    • Anonymous says:

      Yeah its all dem furriners fault – nothing to do with the complainers living beyond their means…
      Why do some people always have to have someone else to blame for their own shortcomings?

      • Anonymous says:

        I wouldn’t be too quick to judge if I were you. Life can be just humming along and walaa you’re hit by a terrible illness, get in a car accident, lose your job, hurricane hit, etc. Caymanians have been dropping like flies from cancer lately in case you haven’t noticed.

    • Anonymous says:

      The gloves did not fit. OJ

  2. Anonymous says:

    For all the business as usual crowd.

    Putting aside the moral and ethical arguments, look what this does to the economy. House auctions at rock bottom prices drive down everyones house prices. This has the knock on effect of negative equity, leading to more foreclosures. It also leads to deflation and shrinking in the economy.

    This is why the US government stepped in, in the US to assist and in Cayman with a high expat population and no credit history, it is far easier to walk away from a negative equity situation.

  3. Anonymous says:

    Maybe the government or those with the knowledge should explore the feasibility of reverse mortgage. While it won’t solve most of the problem it might assist the most vulnerable as, for example, those older persons and with critical sickness.
    Thereby, allowing them to live in dignity and not become indigent on government as the welfare for life will bankrupt the country.
    The same should apply to those collecting government benefits while children are waiting to exercise rights of next of kin over property on the death of their parents or living off their parents limited income and or benefits, Politicians need to show some creativity and courage and reform the welfare, legal aid and all other systems of handouts for life.

  4. Anonymous says:

    “But with no negotiation or effort to get the homeowners passed [sic] their difficulties, banks are taking properties and listing them for auction literally under the noses of the homeowners [sic]”

    Extraordinary. How does one conduct an auction underneath a nose and obtain the best possible price? This must stop!

  5. Just Sayin' says:

    Sell the iPhone and make a mortgage payment.

  6. Anonymous says:

    I agree and disagree with a lot of the comments made concerning this article. To the people who have lost their homes and have to cope with this including having children to to feed and raise and having to take care of the elderly, I am very sorry. Some of the comments that were made about 3,000 foreclosures happening in 3 years, I believe this is true.

    You have people who have been scammed by developers, realtors and banks that have lost their homes. People like this needs to be persecuted for the wrong that they have done and something needs to be done quickly. CNS I applaud you for publishing this story and the truth needs to be known about what is going on in the Cayman. To the CAEI group you need to work quickly on getting the Government’s attention so that they can intervene.

  7. Robert says:

    Banks are in the business of risk management and if you appear to be high risk by missing 3 payments that is where they step in and actively manage their risk.

    This is not economic injustice, it’s business and they will not sit by and lose willingly when there is a contractual agreement in place that says you must pay X each month for 25 years.

    You’ve just got to hold your chin up and take the loss. No hard feelings or collusion. It’s just business.

  8. Anonymous says:

    One reason why everyone has to pay 3 over prime is because it is too hard to foreclose the delinquent in Cayman.

  9. Anonymous says:

    I would be interested in some facts, like which bank is the worst at this, although that generally just means they handed out loans that shouldn’t have been written. People need to know that owning a house isn’t easy, you should consider insurance for loss of income – if you know you are 3 paychecks away from defaulting, but you know what, insurance is expensive and no-one needs it,..until they do, Anyway back to facts, how many foreclosures over the past 5 years, average default amount, average sale below market valuation etc. I do not doubt for a minute that there aren’t genuine grievances, but there are two sides to every story and without some facts nothing will get done.

  10. Anonymous says:

    What a terribly biased article. People who fail to keep their promises and face legal consequences are not being “robbed”.

    • Anonymous says:

      read the heading……… robbed of EQUITY! If the properties are sold below value the borrower may have invested their own money to build, had large deposit or paid the mortgage down to such a level they had substantial equity in the property. When the property is sold in three months at less than value, that’s robbing!

  11. Anonymous says:

    I went through a divorce and had to let the condo go in order to pay my legal bills. Bought the condo in 2007 as a first time buyer and paid every month on time until 2013.
    Didn’t dispute that the bank had a right to sell the property but interestingly two things have happened with the property

    1) Realtor at real estate company charged with selling purchased the property along with another private investor

    2) Property still in our name two months following the purchase likely incurring fees

    hmmm…

  12. Anonymous says:

    What’s happening with this mortgage situation, today, will not go unpunished. ‘Too Big (or Wealthy) to Fail’: Can’t be Regulated; Can’t be Shrunk. Really?

    Pay Attention, People!

    Waiting Patiently.

  13. Gray Matter says:

    Remember when you went to the bank to sigh the loan all excited !; I bet you did not real all 37 pages of your agreement ….. am I right.; this is your problem and not governments. Buckle up Buttercup , banks are not in business to collect Real Estate ; they lend you to make money. you got ample warning from them that doom day was coming , so why did you not sell it yourself for full value ? Get It. So now pull up your big boy pants and face your problems and do not blame others nor the government.

    • Anonymous says:

      8:04 “so why did you not sell it yourself for full value ?” – because the property market is dead or hadn’t you noticed that? Be interesting to see find out many of these foreclosures involved properties that had gone into negative equity as the market value dropped below the amount of the outstanding loan.

      • Right ya so. says:

        actually, the property market is not dead or hadn’t you noticed that!? the prices on both land and property has been steadily increasing over the past 12/14 months!

        • Anonymous says:

          yeah increasing from the floor doesn’t help the man that bought in 2004-2007…not increasing fast enough and wages aren’t increasing either. Hence, banks are selling way below market value to actually get the property sold. I have seen many homes that are CI $350,000 go for CI $200,000.00 ! Also, the only area of real estate really doing well is the high end canal lots , 7mb condos and gated communities around south sound etc. The middle class is getting killed and that is making only two sets of people in cayman rich and poor. Crime is up and the little man is down…starting to make sense?

    • Anonymous says:

      Ok smartass. We are also praying you never get sick or lose your job.

    • Anonymous says:

      well buttercup, I went for a mortgage to complete a $400K house that I had already built on my own from savings…. the house was worth $400K when I finished and the mortgage was less than $120K, I STARTED WITH OVER $250K in equity, so will not stand back and watch the bank sell my house to their buddies for few thousand and I have nothing!!!

  14. Anonymous says:

    Maybe the owners should have sold their house before the bank does it for them.
    It should have been clear they could no longer afford it.
    Sometimes you have to cut your losses, rather then live above your means.

  15. Anonymous says:

    There is no proper lending legislation to protect consumers at all. Not only loans but goods generally. This includes the matter of mortgages. It is indeed correct that we never have had proper mortgages in this country and rather demand loans have been used. Could this be because politicians have had an interest in banks?

  16. kenny says:

    And people complain about the civil service. Wow how cruel the pirate sector is.

  17. Anonymous says:

    Many ppl will recall that back in the day there was at least one head of a bank who used to buy homes foreclosed by his own bank. You know who you are.

    • IMHO says:

      Yep, that’s right and I’m pretty sure that many people still look up to this Elder of the church!

  18. Anonymous says:

    Checkout ‘Banksters’ on you tube folks. The entire world of criminal bankers is going to fall so flat and so permanently on it’s face before you can say ‘rob me’ that it is not going to be funny. The time of humankind robbing the very life out of humankind in the name of greed in this world is coming to an end. Rapidly. And the entire banking world is just one of the biggest culprits.

  19. Anonymous says:

    Live within your means….

    • Anonymous says:

      That’s not a clever remark.
      We talk about people that lost their job or got sick and got fired.
      Since there is no social security here (unless you know the right people), you will lose your house.

    • Anonymous says:

      Interesting that as I type 5 people give dislikes to “live within your means”. That is the central problem of Cayman-Government and its people.

      • Anonymous says:

        People should live within their means yes but this is not your concern . Any home owner should pay close attention and regardless of the status of your mortgage . As a matter of fact even if your house is payed for
        . This crap that is going on has already started to decrease the value of all our properties . Sorry some people are so dumb that it has to be in writing for them to figure out .

    • Anonymous says:

      Stop living as a jerk.

    • Anonymous says:

      I gave you a thumbs down.
      I have no problem with the premise of your statement…….I just don’t like you!

  20. Anonymous says:

    Anyone willing to say if it’s one or two banks, or all of them, any particularly bad? Whilst the loan may have only been 90 days past due this time, no telling if they had been in default for a longer period before. Most people struggling to make payments usually manage to make one or two then default again, most know they’ve got to get a payment in every three months to re-set the clock. Insurance valuations are not what your house is worth on the open market, they include new plans for a replacement house, site clearance of the old house, they tend to be at least 15% over what you can sell the house for, if the property is worth more you always have the option of selling it yourself. Not necesarily defending the banks but the way this reads everyone who have lost their house only have a mortgage, no other debts to the bank, missed 3 payments and thrown out in a matter of weeks.

    • SKEPTICAL says:

      Sorry 4.40pm. The insurance issue was badly worded by the correspondent. The insurance the bank demands is ” Life Insurance ” to guarantee that there are funds to pay off the loan balance if you die before it is payed off in the normal course of events. The side issue here is that local insurance agents will frequently try to sell borrowers far more expensive types of life insurance, when all they need is a simple ” Whole of Life ” policy. Or, if the length of the loan period is relatively short, a ” Term Life ” policy.
      That said, what is happening with these foreclosure sales has to be, by any standards, unreasonable and inequitable. But banks are of course very little different from Loan Sharks – they just charge lower rates of interest, and are officially licensed – and at least they don’t send someone to your house to break your legs.

  21. JTB says:

    A sale by auction by definition realises the market value of the property.

    The gist of this article seems to be that lenders should be forced to sit on their hands, while the arrears mount up, in the hope that at some stage, after who knows how long, the market might improve and the actual value might get closer to the borrower’s inflated fantasy opinion of its value.

  22. Anonymous says:

    I know of a recent situation where two of the big valuation firms valued a building saying it was built of concrete block. After it was sold the owners found out it was not concrete but made of wood with cement board siding on the exterior.

    There a lot of things that Government needs to do to regulate the banks and these Valuations firms. Will they do it is another question. Like most governments this one is beholding to them and with election in the offing not much will happen in any case.

  23. Anonymous says:

    As a realtor who has dealt with foreclosures, I can honestly say that at least in my situation there has been no collusion. The banks will tell the realtors what price to list the properties, the realtor then gets offers which are communicated to the bank which they have the option to accept or turn down.

  24. Marathon says:

    Anywhere else in the world the bank has a duty to treat the borrower fairly, and in particular to obtain a fair value for the property in the event of a forced sale. If this story is accurate, this is a massive injustice being perpetrated. I wonder if it is just one or two buyers building a property portfolio? I smell a racket.

    • SKEPTICAL says:

      Think this is particularly correct in UK. Some years ago the High Court ordered a bank (Lloyd’s ?) to pay damages to a couple whose house had been sold at a knock down price under foreclosure, resulting in them losing over £100,000 of unrealised equity capital.

  25. Anonymous says:

    “While the US government and other western administrations had stepped in with legislation to prevent speedy foreclosure against people caught up in the world economic recession, it appears the rules in Cayman have been adjusted to make it even quicker and easier for banks to take loan holders who miss just three payments immediately to court and list the property for sale.”

    Who made the adjustments to the rules ? Which politicians ?

    Who buys these properties ? Which brokers ?

    • Scott Henderson says:

      Chief Justice Anthony Smellie made the adjustment himself with a Directives Order dated 2012 and 2014. This is something that needs to be addressed by the law makers, the LA, not the chief Justice. And in any case the banks are not following the Directives and getting away with it which is a travesty. Consider 3,000 foreclosers most likely represents 9,000 people more or less…..banks are pissing away home owners equity without regard to the borrower. The Directives and the court orders state that the bank must protect the borrowers best interests but the banks disregard these directives or orders and do as they please without difficulty or intervention from the court to protect the borrower….!

  26. Anonymous says:

    It is important to understand that not all homes being foreclosed fall into this scenario. In many cases banks have court orders from over three years back giving them the right to foreclose and sell the property. In some cases there have been no payments at all in that time except maybe from the “Dart/ Bush” so called assistance. Most of those helped are still in arrears and, yes facing, foreclosure. In most cases the foreclosure is just and warranted. In cases where it is not, action should be taken against those unscrupulous individuals involved. In the majority of cases, however, people lose their houses because they have not lived up to their contractual agreement.

    Let us not paint all with the same brush!!

  27. Anonymous says:

    Mssing three payments is plenty reason to be foreclosed. On the other hand, the appraisers should not undervalue the properties. The guy with a $580000 house really has no excuse.

  28. Great article Wendy. Hopefully it will generate some discussion on what can only be termed callous behaviour on part of the lenders.

  29. Anonymous says:

    The banks also are tacking outrageous interest on a daily basis. By the time they sell your house, you will still owe the bank, for they are only listing it on what their evaluation states, even though you know it is worth more. So if you owe (example) the bank $500,000 and they list at $350,000 you will still owe the 150,000 and interest tacked on. But I can’t believe there has been over 3000 foreclosures??? Doesn’t government look at this and think maybe there is a problem in cayman?

    • low-cal says:

      They know. They helped a lot of these people secure a loan they know would not be piad by allowing unqualified borrowers to falsely qualify by raiding their pensions. Thank Elio for that one.

  30. Anonymous says:

    The problem is the 3% over prime which is just there to create these problems. Plus what about house insurance why are we still paying 3 times after they made every cent of their money back. When will the corruption stop in this country

  31. Anonymous says:

    Actually, they do have a point. In Jamaica and other countries, foreclosing on someone’s property is not as easy as it seems to be here. As someone who has worked in banking for quite sometime, I can tell you that the Courts in Jamaica require banks and mortgage companies to provide an independent valuation for properties. Valuators have to list a forced sale value as well as a market value. Once the property goes to auction, the Bank/mortgage company has to list the property not for the forced sale value but the median value of the property.

    Yes, people should pay their bills, but as a wise man once said, there but for the Grace of God go I

  32. Anonymous says:

    CNS – Thank you for raising this serious matter. Thankfully I am not one personally affected but this is clearly a major problem which in turn affects us all by de-valuing properties in some areas.

    To those insensitive commentators remember the adage, “there but by the grace of God, go I”. Wonder if you would have the same attitude if you found yourself unable to keep up with your mortgage for whatever reason??

  33. Anonymous says:

    According to this article 3,000 properties have been taken by banks in the last 3 years. That’s 1,000 a year about 4 every working day. Do CNS believe this even for one second? Or do they just print any made-up fact for its salacious effect. The article also says the court lists are “full” of these law suits. Did you even bother to verify that? Obviously not, becuase it’s completely untrue as any basic investigative reporting would have shown. CNS really has become the new Cayman Net News it’s sad to say.

    • Anon says:

      CNS, respect for publishing this criticism.

    • WaYaSay says:

      Anon 1:32, Pray tell….do you have one single fact that can disprove the factual correctness of the numbers in this article that CNS printed? If you do have the “correct” statistics, why the hell do you not state them instead of castigating CNS?

      You obviously have NO basis for your criticism of CNS but just cannot keep your trap shut……or rather your grubby fingers off your keyboard.

      If you have nothing factual to add to the discussion, I for one, would rather put my trust in CNS’s reporting than in your airy brain! Thanks CNS for exposing this dirty fact.

      Did you just post your “made-up-fact for it’s salacious effect” or do you not care about Caymanians losing their homes or, did you just want to steal your boss’s time at 1:32pm while your lazy ass surfed the internet on his time and computer?

      If the 26 thumbs up, who agree with you, want to give me thumbs down now instead, I would be honored!

  34. Anonymous says:

    The first step is to have the “mortgage” changed to exactly that:- a mortgage not a “demand” loan!
    Every weekend the local paper has a flyer filled with homes for sale and it is a national disgrace as all know of the economic situation here!
    I pray that these lending institutions will be forced to pay the difference in the equity that was so ruthlessly taken from these homeowners!
    I am not in that position but one never knows what can happen to change one’s financial standing and so I will stand with all who’ve had this horrible injustice done to them!
    Keep pressing on……..
    There’s 18 members in LA but approx 25000 of us out here!
    Let’s right this wrong! We can!!!

    • Anonymous says:

      It’s the praying part that worries me.
      That has kept us dumb . . . .

    • Anonymous says:

      It is a mortgage not a demand loan, it is just the bank cab call in the loan when someone defaults. You don’t default then there is no problem. Every property owner should have six months of mortgage payments in a savings account. If they can’t afford that pot then they can’t afford the property.

  35. Anonymous says:

    People never stop tot hunk they could lose their jobs and you only have to get behind three months and you too could be facing foreclosure, being homeless with children. Yes it happens in other countries all the time but many of these countries have laws to give homeowners more opportunities to save their most valued asset, their homes.

  36. Crimea Rivers says:

    It’s not your house. It’s the banks house, until you have paid them back the money you borrowed. That’s the bottom line. Don’t like it? Buy property with your own money, not someone else’s.

    • Johnny99 says:

      Dude, tell your mama that. If you don’t like it, there’s nothing you can do about it. Tough. Just as inconsiderate as you are.

      And just for your information there is a racket going on here. That’s why things are setup the way they are.

      But that’s ok, they better be willing to die for it cause I am.

  37. Knot S Smart says:

    I have always believed that ‘living high off the hog’ will come back to bite you in the a$$…

  38. Anonymous says:

    When you got your loan you signed a contract with the lender.
    Now sell that boat, the 50,000 truck, make your own lunch, stay out of Royal Palms, catch the bus to work and turn up athe AC a little. You will catch up with your mortgage

  39. Anonymous says:

    Why is it that only Caymanians have this problem. The Banks only foreclose as a last measure and after every effort to allow the borrower time to pay up arrears.Let these complainers release some real evidence of their complaints

    • Anonymous says:

      Because, 12:16, Caymanians have ben led to believe by Ezzard Miller and others that they are “entitled” and rules that apply in every single other country in the world do not apply here because “bobo, we born Caymanians”. Sickening nonsense.

    • Anonymous says:

      @12:16 do you like apples?
      check the Cayman Gazette Demand Notice Section and then do a google search of the names that are commonly posted therein. What you will notice is that it is commonly filled with expats who’s work permit has expired and they have taken a 2nd or 3rd mortgage out drained any remaining equity along with credit cards maxed out and have left the burden on the remainder to support local banking via higher fees and that includes the Caymanians who do pay their bills and you too I suppose. I guess your use to that back home with the big tax dodging bunch which you likely feature predominately in that class inviting squinted and suspicious eyes from friends and family over that holiday dinner. Oooo…That hits close to home buddy…it’s ok you can always bash a local (with your PR application in most likely); it might make you feel better about the snot on a rag you really are.

      While you let that sink in and reflect…..ask yourself this

      How do you like them apples?

      Mr. Boston

  40. Anonymous says:

    So the members say 3000 properties were lost. Maybe a fact check on this. Don’t recall seeing three auctions a week promoted, or in fact ANY auctions promoted.

  41. Anonymous says:

    3000 over the last 3 years?

    That is a 1000 houses per year or about 3 per day.

    It sounds a bit inflated.

    Perhaps CNS could dig to verify.

  42. Anonymous says:

    if there is any real injustice then there is a legal remedy….
    however this reminds me of the other caymanian fairytale of degree qualified caymanians not being able to find jobs and being discriminated against….zzzzzzzzzzzz

  43. Anonymous says:

    Even as an expat I see this as criminal and will only exasperate the poverty of the local population. It seems the government is trying to assist Caymanians in buying their first house, to get them on the property ladder, only to get screwed by the bank.
    Government has to step in on this situation fast.
    Homeowners, please try and save up a contingency reserve of at least 6 months worth of mortgage payments, this can be hard but budgeting s key, downsize the car, and avoid expensive car payments on a devaluing asset.

  44. Anonymous says:

    this is wonderland stuff……from my experience in the industry banks normally bend over backwards to avoid foreclosures…..
    the only people to blame are the people that have defaulted on thier mortgages…..
    but hey… this is cayman…..where no-one takes responsibility for their actions….

  45. Anonymous says:

    If the true figure is 3000 over just three years (that averages around three a day) in a population of just over 50,000 you have got a very serious problem. I come from a town in the UK with a population of around 48,000. They have fairly high unemployment and a lot of economic problems but according to official figures there were just 87 re-possessions there in 2014. Admittedly, it’s a different lending process and that figure does not include hand backs or walk outs but that’s still a heck of a difference.

  46. Anonymous says:

    so much much mis-information in this article….
    homeowners are fee to take legal action if they think their is collusion…….i bet they won’t…

  47. Anonymous says:

    Take your time to shop around for home insurance, most carriers on island provide interest free installment plans depending upon certain criteria. Unless it’s by written agreement you’re not tied to taking insurance through the bank. Talk to your insurance company directly or speak to many of the insurance brokers on island. There are options.

  48. Anonymous says:

    There should be some middle ground between where these people find themselves and those who think that politicians should use government money to “save their mortgage” in return for votes.

  49. Anonymous says:

    Pay your damn bills and hush.

    • Anonymous says:

      you need to hush old hypocrite..god help you if you end up in a position where you cant pay yours!

    • Anonymous says:

      You got in over your head, the bank doesn’t care all they want is their money back

    • GFY says:

      You obviously didn’t suddenly lose your job 2 weeks after buying your house! Hope you don’t find yourself in our shoes, then try to walk a mile in our moccasins and have someone tell you, “pay your bills”! Ignorant rass……..

  50. Anonymous says:

    Caymankind..

    • Anonymous says:

      You don’t know what’s going on,you should hush.

    • Anonymous says:

      The majority of people are not living debt free and are not millionaires.

      In any event, if you or a family member became ill and medical costs mounted to point where you had to mortgage your property because friends/family could not afford to assist, or worse, you also end up losing your job (suppose you lose the work permit)?

      Any action the group takes to help amend laws and regulations will help those in the future even more than those who have now lost their homes and trying to help.

      So personally maybe God will bless all of you who mock and taunt injustice to experience it first hand so that you can appreciate what others are trying to do with their lessons learnt.

      • Anonymous says:

        …and where the employer of the person facing medical bills has not in fact provided the insurance required by Law, and the Government refuses to enforce the Law properly, then yes, some Caymanians with serious illnesses will lose their homes in direct consequence. That is not the bank’s fault. It is however Governments.

    • Anonymous says:

      Would you and the other idiot above you kindly leave some space here for comments with a grain of sense?

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