WORSE THAN WE THINK?

So I'm reading through one of the many market analyst newsletters I subscribe to - the Motley Fool - and I came across this: "It's So Much Worse Than You Think". Here's a snippet ...

If you owe more on your house than it's worth, deliberately pursuing foreclosure can be a rational -- if unethical -- decision. It isn't surprising that this is happening. For years, lenders have been using legal fine print to gouge borrowers by raising the interest rates on credit cards and charging obscure fees seemingly whenever the mood struck them. Borrowers are now playing the same game ... But this is happening with only with an 8.4% fall in the housing market. What happens with a 15% or 30% fall? ... If a recession develops -- which, frankly, seems likely to me -- and the market falls 30%, then nearly two of every five mortgages will be under water.

But don't trust me, read the article - especially the accompanying chart.

- Mark