Wayne Dawkins for blackpower.com writes:

Howard University economist William E. Spriggs broke this down to two dozen African-American newspaper columnists last month. Spriggs summarized “Subprime as a black catastrophe,” by Melvin L. Oliver and Thomas M. Shapiro that was published as a special report of The American Prospect magazine.

American borrowers of color have collectively lost an estimated $164 billion to $213 billion in housing wealth as a result of subprime loans taken during the past eight years, wrote the co-authors. Furthermore, subprime-related foreclosures harm one in 10 black borrowers. For whites, the pain visits one in 25 borrowers.

Why is the pain so acute for African-Americans and is this the 21st century version of the aphorism–when America catches a cold, black America catches pneumonia?

He later writes:

“Before this housing debacle that is part of the greater economic meltdown, 75 percent of whites owned their homes compared to 47 percent of blacks, Jessica Gordon Nembhard, another Howard University economist told the black columnists.

That means African-Americans, who en mass were in the weaker position regarding home ownership, were weakened again when black customers with blemished credit were steered to crappy loans. (more…)

Not too long ago a Obama supporter told me that now that we have a Black President, we can no longer play the race card.

So is this an admission that the race card was nothing more than a poker face to Whites? I’ll let you decide that one.

Now I am not about to rehash all my conversations on this topic because I think that the damage is done and we need to just deal with the here and now. But for a minute, I must deal with this assertion that Blacks are the first class VICTIMS in this subprime mess.

I live in southern California–a place that is considered to be ground zero for home foreclosures (next to south Florida). My particular town was billed to be the next Irvine as home builders and commercial developers rushed in to accommodate that income bracket. About 2 miles from me is a million dollar gated community complete with its own golf course, restaurant and mountain views to die for. If I were to drive you through that same community today, you will find a bank notice on practically every other home. The private golf course had to go public because the HOA wasn’t bringing in enough money. What is worse is that the upscale outdoor mall built primarily for this community has been dead. In fact, I just read that the management company for this mall has missed its last two payments. One business owner we know who had a restaurant in that center has already left. As far as our home goes, in one year we have lost between $200-250k in value.

Demographically speaking, who were the ones loosing their homes in that community?
Mostly Whites.

What I have been noticing is a bump in the Black population who are moving to those same homes at a fraction of the cost. Welcome, fam! When is the next Bid Whist game?

So does Dawkins also consider the Whites who lost their homes in this community “victims”? Were these individuals in this mostly White community also tricked into risky loans or is Dawkins asserting here that Blacks innately will fall for the flim flam every time and should always be considered helpless imbeciles?

As far as I am concerned, those who bought within their means and are keeping up with their payments while they watch the property value go down are the real victims here. My basic point? The true victims of this mess are not connected by race, but those who are watching their home values shrink–thanks in part to those who saw their home as a ATM machine.

On the flip, I can take you to towns occupied by mostly Blacks and Hispanics who were just as guilty of jumping into these loans as the Whites I mentioned earlier. The result? Those towns are now rental havens where gang activity is just a part of life.

During the housing boom, my wife and I have came across MANY Black lenders and real estate agents who did not think twice about steering their own into loans they could not afford. In fact, the same can be said about Hispanic lenders/agents, Whites–all the colors of the rainbow. So if anyone wants to play the race blame game here, I say “Take your pick”. The subprime market did not discriminate. Everyone was out to make money.My podcast interview with mortgage lending industry expert, Christopher Cruise covers how Blacks in the lending industry were just as complicit as the White ones when it came to subprime.

Now, were there cases out there where individuals were pressured to skip the fine print and just sign on the dotted line? Yep, Yep, Yep! Were there lenders out there who purposely withheld important information about the loan to their clients? You bet. But the point I will continue to raise is that many of these “victims” leaned on the “expertise” of  agents and lenders that looked like them in the industry. Mind you, their so-called expertise could care less for the borrower. Do a commentary on that and see what kind of reaction you will get. In the meantime, this brutha from blackenterprise.com knows what he is talking about when it comes to lenders.

In this case here he is talking about foreclosure scams. But it also happens with first time loan applicants.

Your rescuer plays on your feelings of victimization, or desperate need for a solution, by harping on the unfairness of your situation. They may even appeal to you based on racial solidarity (They’re just trying to help “our people”) or religious grounds (For example, they want to be “a blessing” to their fellow Christians). (source)

The latest fad out here is for homeowners who bought cars with the equity in their home at the time are leaving both the house and the car for the banks to pick up. There are at least two homes like that in my community right now.

But again, I am supposed to consider these individuals “victims”.

Give me a break.

Getting screwed by one of your own