My Life in Argentina and Beyond

I wish I could shame the real estate woman and the loan officer she recommended into giving me my money back—the $170,000 that I bought the condo in Atlanta for—as well as my lost excellent credit and all the other money I lost. I also wish I could shame them into giving me the condo in Buckhead back.I could give an interview and mention their names. That's one idea. Other than that, I don't know.They ought to be ashamed of themselves. Eugenia Renskoff

It was a two-bedroom, 2 bath condo in Buckhead, one of the best neighborhoods in Atlanta, GA. The location could not be better—near the supermarket, some shops and Borders bookstore. But shortly after I closed, I began to suspect that something had gone wrong—terribly wrong. I started asking people and looking on the Internet. Refinancing right away carried a penalty; the same for selling the place. I have overpaid and was now in deep trouble. I knew I was going to miss the condo (it was a quiet second floor walk-up), but the financial burden of keeping it would be overwhelming. I don’t know what is more devastating or damaging than losing the home that you love. A home is a place that more than shelters you. A home lets you be you. It keeps you when no one else does or wants to. You turn to it for more than a bed, a kitchen and a shower. And when it’s gone, there is no going back. It’s not just that things can never be the same—the damage is more harmful than anything a person has ever known. Foreclosure is a bad word. No one wants to pronounce it and yet so many people, like myself, have had to say it over and over again. My home was foreclosed.

Another consequence of the GA foreclosure/mortgage fraud: When I was living in Atlanta (right after it dawned on me that I had been scammed) I would take just $20 out of the ATM and treat myself to some sourdough bread from Eatzy’s, the Buckhead deli. I felt a little guilty about it, but that sourdough was a reminder of my old and easier life, a life with no bad money problems.

The ongoing foreclosure crisis in the United States brings my own foreclosure all too vividly back to me. In 2005, I did everything I could to save my condo in Atlanta from foreclosure. There was negative equity in the place, so getting someone to buy it wasn’t an option. Nevertheless, I tried that because the condo was in a beautiful neighborhood, close to supermarkets and shopping malls. I talked to the lender, contacted HUD, got in touch with anybody who might possibly be of help. I lost my fight and my home was gone on November 1, 2005. What came after was even worse and I have been living an uncertain and hard life since then. In my own lifetime, I hope to see the real estate broker and loan officer who got me the loan punished. I have been told time and time again, that given my 754 credit score, the loan was very bad indeed. I say to anyone reading this: If you now find yourself in a similar situation, fight! Do whatever it takes to save your home. Don’t give up even if it seems hopeless.

Thursday, August 27, 2009: I had a dream this morning where I was telling someone about my foreclosure experience in GA. i told him (i think it was a friend) how desperate it had made me feel and how helpless I feel and have felt at not being able to get justice and/or my money back.

Letter To OBama

President Barack Obama

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Obama,

I am writing to tell you my subprime mortgage story. In July 2002 I moved to Atlanta, GA. There I bought a condo for $170,000. I was offered two loans: one for $136,000 at 9.75% and the other for $136,000 at 13%. I should have been suspicious at these high interest rates, but I trusted the realtor, and loan officer she worked with. At this time my credit score was around 754 and I had no credit card debt . A few days before closing, the realtor informed me that the loan officer had paid $300 to somebody to write the mortgage company & tell them that I had my own publishing company and that I made $120,000 a year. I was shocked at this lie, but I thought I had no choice but to go ahead with the closing. I honestly believed it was too late to turn back. After the July 26, 2002 closing, I contacted the seller’s real estate company. I wanted to sell the place. They told me that I could get $150,000 for it at most. $20,000 less than I had paid! The appraisal had been for $188,000. I tried refinancing, but because there was a penalty of $5,000 if I sold or refinance less than 2 years after the purchase of the condo, all the lenders turned me down. I decided I would rent it out. The realtor had told me that I could rent it for around $1,600 a month on the roommate plan, but all the realtors I worked with could get no more than $875-900 for it. That was way below my 2 mortgage payments plus the monthly common charges of $225 a month. My savings began to drain away. I wanted to save my condo at all costs and I didn’t want to have a foreclosure. I had been proud of my almost perfect credit score and now it was in danger of being ruined. I took a job as a domestic for 3 months, in spite of my bad back. In 2004 I was only able to rent out the condo for 6 months. To make the mortage I was forced to use credit cards. Eventually I racked up more debt and unable to make payments the condo foreclosed on November 1, 2005.. I would like to ask you to help change the laws so that real estate people can get punished for doing what my realtor did. I was very naïve to trust the realtor but I did everything in my power to make the payments and to save my place. There are countless numbers of persons (even HUD and various real estate investors) that I contacted. Nothing did any good (the investors would not buy the condo because it had what they called negative equity). Now it appears that my life will stay in shambles.What I went through happened before this subprime crisis exploded, but its effect on my life was beyond belief. It is the same as if someone had kicked me in the back and left me paralyzed for life.

I have lived with Lau, my cat, in the streets of Manhattan. People were very kind to both of us. I am especially grateful to the soup kitchen at St. Bart’s church on 50th between Lexington and Park, the Starbuck’s coffee shop on 51st. just off Park and the Midnight Run organization. Passers by were also nice to us, giving me food for Lau and playing with her.

Now I am in Williamsburgh, Brooklyn. A friend allows me to stay in his loft. I have terrible back pain and no medical insurance. My back condition is chronic, and needs the care of a professional. When it is very painful, it hurts me to walk, go up and down the stairs and sit. I am in desperate need of medical help but can not pay for it due to my ruined finances. Sincerely, Eugenia Maria Renskoff