How badly has your home value been impacted by the recession?

[Irvine Laird]

We live on a good block three blocks north of Eight Mile Road in Hazel Park. We bought our house for $100,000 in 2005 and presently owe about $92,000. Zillow.com says it's worth $62,000, but I guarantee nothing in my part of Hazel Park is selling for more than $20,000 to $30,000 [[if it's selling at all).

We don't plan to stay any longer than we have to, but it has nothing to do with the house or neighborhood. We want to have kids and a two-bedroom house with no basement is too small.

A surprising number of people advise us to buy another house and "strategic default" on our property in Hazel Park.

This is a temptation. We don't want to be landlords and we will be far beyond child-bearing age by the time we build any equity in our present home. People tell us the banks broke their contract with us, so why should we keep paying them.

As much as this may be true, we decided that to abandon our house would be to break our contract with our community and neighbors. This city has suffered enough abandonment already by people "looking out for Number One." The broad crises of the last few decades were the product of individuals who put themselves first--and often concocted a moral reason for it.

So we will stay in Detroit and we will stay in our house until we are ready to be landlords. We'll choose tenants who will contribute to the quality of life on our block in Hazel Park and, when the time comes, we will sell our house in good shape.

I don't know that we will come out on top in the end, but I do know that we have to BE what we want Detroit to be. I find encouragement in the fact that many feel the same.

[sirrealone]

People tell us the banks broke their contract with us, so why should we keep paying them.

As much as this may be true...

Could you please indulge me on how the bank broke their contract in your situation?

[Hermod]

Could you please indulge me on how the bank broke their contract in your situation?

My thoughts as well. The bank contracted to loan you "x" amount of dollars so that you could buy the house. You contracted to pay the bank back with interest over a 360 month period. No where did the bank guarantee the present or future condition or value of the house you bought.