Whose fault is it?

The other day someone asked me, “Whose fault is it?” With a confused look on my face, begging for clarification, the person elaborated, “Whose fault is it that we’re seeing all these foreclosures? Whose fault is it that the housing bubble burst and now we’re picking up all of the pieces?”

I chuckled, hoping the man understood that my response would not be brief and that he needed much of the evening to hear me rant and rave about the intricacies of the issue. Where should I start? We can talk about greedy investors, ambitious banks, overly-relaxed lending practices, exotic loans, or home buyers who bit off more than they could chew. Is it the buyer or the seller? Or is the fault left to plain greed? We debated over these issues for almost an hour and found ourselves disagreeing on most things. It was a frustrating conversation for the both of us as we both ended dissatisfied with where the other person took a stance. But we decided we do agree on the fact that ultimately there is probably not one single player in this game to blame, but several.

My name is Jenny and I have the opportunity to serve as an AmeriCorps Member in Michigan’s Foreclosure Corps. In this program I am able to assist the Inner City Christian Federation, a non-profit agency, in the efforts of foreclosure prevention. This is important because to so many folks, homeownership is a stable foundation in their lives. It provides a sense of security, stability, and pride. It is easy to see why families, individuals, children, and single parents are being shaken by this. Through this experience I have learned the importance of figuring out the reasoning behind the housing crisis. Doing this allows us to deal more comprehensively with the issue and to prevent it from occurring again. More important than figuring out who the culprit is, is to find a solution for the people affected by this.

Who is to blame is not as important as who is affected:

Most significant is the family who called in the other day with foster children. Dad has been laid off from General Motors and they are scrambling to provide and sustain the stability their home provides for their children.

It’s the single mother that stopped by the other day. Her interest rate jumped up, increasing her monthly payment by more than $100 a month and she can’t keep up anymore. Her daughters are both in school.

It’s the man who called because he was in a car accident. He had to take several months off from work and has no current income to make a mortgage payment.

It’s the families who have to decide between paying for food and utilities for their children or paying their mortgage. It’s these people, men and women across the state, individuals and families, who are affected by foreclosures.

I am humbled as I recall the stories and the people that have come across my path who are struggling to keep their home. I remember that I value the pursuit of justice and commitment to service. At the end of the day we may not all agree on who is to blame or how exactly we got here. Maybe something we can agree on though is that there’s an opportunity before us to be a part of the solution – and that’s good common ground guaranteed to be fruitful for the state of Michigan.