The Continuing Depopulation of Detroit

By Laura Gottesdiener, TomDispatch Apr 20, 2015 The city that was the arsenal of the 20th century may also provide the blueprint for a more precarious era: 100,000 of its residents are on what many call an eviction “conveyor belt.” Dig deeper ( 13 Min. Read )

Does Barney Frank’s New Book Let Democrats Off the Hook?

Staff / Truthdig Apr 3, 2015 Truthdig Editor-in-Chief Robert Scheer confronts the former Massachusetts representative over President Clinton’s role in creating the Great Recession and other issues dividing progressives from the Democratic Party leadership.Truthdig Editor-in-Chief Robert Scheer confronts former Massachusetts Rep. Barney Frank over President Clinton’s role in creating the Great Recession and other issues dividing progressives from the Democratic Party leadership. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Big Banks Hit With Monster $250 Billion Lawsuit in Housing Crisis

By Ellen Brown, Web of Debt Jul 17, 2014 In June, investors led by the world’s largest asset manager and the world’s largest bond-fund manager sued some of the world’s largest banks for breach of fiduciary duty as trustees of their investment funds. The investors are seeking damages for the equivalent of 1 million homeowners with $250,000 in damages suing at one time. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

Foreclosure Filings Jump as Investors Eye Exits

By Mike Whitney, CounterPunch Feb 15, 2014 It’s too bad Keynes isn’t around today to see how the toxic combo of financial engineering, central bank liquidity and fraud have transformed the world’s biggest economy into a hobbled, crisis-prone invalid that’s unable to grow without giant doses of zero-rate heroin and mega-leverage crack cocaine. Dig deeper ( 7 Min. Read )

Elizabeth Warren’s New Bill Aims to Stop Employers Discriminating Against the Poor

Staff / Truthdig Dec 18, 2013 Citing "basic fairness" as motivation for introducing a bill that would prevent employers from using credit reports as criteria when hiring a new employee, Warren, along with six other senators, is once again fighting battles for the disadvantaged. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton is busy assuaging Wall Street's fears about populism. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Iraq Vet: Losing Home ‘Worse Than Getting Blown Up’

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Nov 10, 2013 Twenty-six year National Guardsman Jerrod Hays lost nearly half his face to a roadside bomb in Iraq. Now, like too many other Americans, he could lose his home to banks. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Banks Suspected of Racial Bias in Housing Crisis Aftermath

Staff / Truthdig Sep 28, 2013 Financial institutions handling foreclosures, especially Bank of America, have been accused of letting properties in minority neighborhoods deteriorate. The National Fair Housing Alliance collected evidence that the bank is maintaining foreclosed houses in predominantly white areas in far better conditions. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Poor Losing Homes Over Small Tax Liens to Private ‘Investors’

BLANK Sep 8, 2013 Low-income D.C. residents -- many of them retirees -- have been losing their homes under a program in which tax rights are sold to private investors who add mind-boggling fees and then foreclose when they aren't paid. And it's all legal. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Federal Cash to Help Homeowners Will Raze Properties Instead

BLANK Aug 21, 2013 Some $100 million in federal money aimed at keeping Michigan families in their homes will now be used to tear down emptied buildings. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

The Landscape of Wall Street’s Creative Destruction

By Laura Gottesdiener, TomDispatch Aug 2, 2013 It’s May 2012 and we’re in Woodlawn, a largely African American neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago. The goal of the HIT Squad, short for Housing Identification and Target, is to map blighted, bank-owned homes with overdue property taxes and neighbors angry enough about the destruction of their neighborhood to consider supporting a plan to repossess on the repossessors. Dig deeper ( 15 Min. Read )

Bank of America Lied to Homeowners and Rewarded Foreclosures, Ex-Employees Say

By Paul Kiel, ProPublica Jun 18, 2013 Bank of America employees regularly lied to homeowners seeking loan modifications, denied their applications for made-up reasons, and were rewarded for sending homeowners to foreclosure, according to sworn statements by former bank employees. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Wells Fargo Foreclosing on Florida Man Who Made Mortgage Payments Early

Tracy Bloom / Truthdig May 26, 2013 Did you know you could make your mortgage payments early and still be foreclosed on? That's exactly what happened to a Florida man who says he not only made his loan payments ahead of time, but even paid more than was required each month, and is still being foreclosed on by Wells Fargo. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )