Reply #5: Did either you or your grandson check into this loan?

[MadHound]

Did either of you do any research on this loan, read the fine print, etc. etc.? It may sound harsh, but you should have. After all, this is, for most people, the largest single investment that they make, and the standard financial advice has always been to research, research, research. You have the right to examine the loan, consult an adviser or lawyer or both. It isn't just common sense that dictates these precautions, but one's very financial future. I don't know the specifics of your grandson's dealings with this bank, but if your grandson and daughter failed to do any of this, then yes, they were suffering from a serious lack of both common sense and intelligence.

Yes, the banks have been fraudulent, tricky, and even criminal. But as the saying goes, it takes two to tango, and if these borrowers had used their heads and treated buying a house like the serious matter it is then they wouldn't be in this situation. Banks bear a large share of the responsibility in this mess, but borrowers do also. Yes, there are people out there who, through health or other catastrophic happenings lost their house through no fault of their own and deserve help. But the vast majority of people lost their homes as soon as they signed the dotted line because of their own foolishness and lack of thinking. Sorry, but that should not be rewarded. This crisis met at the intersection of Greed and Stupidity, and both parties are at fault.

The real victims of this are the rest of us, that vast majority of people who did the right things, used their head, were careful with their finances, and still have to bear the brunt of a wrecked economy, rising taxes, and now this fine, hefty load that bails out the foolish and greedy.