Yesterday I had my first encounter with someone whose home had been forclosed on. Boy did that conversation leave an impression on my heart and mind. I know that I have a great life and am very lucky to have the friends that I do, have a roof over my head, my health, my great animals, food, vehicles, nice clothes and so many other things that I forget to appreciate daily. Talking to this lady yesterday about her current predicament really hit me hard.
It all started innocently enough. Yesterday afternoon I had the floor. Our front desk assistant needed to run an errand and asked me to watch the front for a few minutes. The phone rang and I answered with our usual greeting. The woman on the other end was very confused so I waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts and get organized. She thought that someone from our office had phoned her earlier in the day and was trying to figure out why. I was the only one in the office at the time and I know that I didn't call her but she was very confused.
We had one agent out showing homes so I thought maybe this woman had a home for sale that was being looked at that evening. I asked her if she had her home listed and that's where the story gets sad. Mind you, the woman on the other end of the line sounded elderly and frail and I was picturing her in my mind throughout our talk. She told me that she hoped her house wasn't being shown that day because she had just signed foreclosure papers the day before. Ouch.
She was being forced out of a home that she had inherited from her father when he passed away. The payments had become too much for her and she was unable to hang on to it. Currently she lives with 2 small dogs and 2 cats that she considers her family. All of these animals she has raised from infancy and can't bear the thought of losing them. Our town has very few rentals that allow pets and she was beside herself trying to find a place to live where she could keep her animals together.
Imagine losing your home. No where to go. The security that your father tried to give you is now gone. And now you're being forced to give up the animals that make your life full and happy. I gave her a coupke of numbers of rentals that I know of that will accept pets. Made some phone calls on her behalf and gave her my number in case there is anything else that I can do. It's not a lot when you look at what she is faced with.
So I'm wondering, where have all the intelligent, compassionate people gone? Are all late payees treated the same? Or is there any latitude for a case by case answer? It's rhetorical. I know the answer already but it's disappointing. I'm not a lender and I certainly don't have the financial resources to fund homes for other folks. But man, we are all in this together and it would be nice if we used our heads to see who really does need help and who is trying to scam the system. And if we used our hearts to come up with a more accepting solution than ripping an old woman's home away from her and leaving her to fend for herself. There but for the grace of God go I...
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