Saturday, March 22, 2008 , the wee hours

The “Modification”

Perhaps you’ve seen or heard all the news stories about how mortgage companies are working with home owners to try to prevent foreclosure.  The stories talk about principal amounts being reduced to reflect a home’s current value, interest rates being fixed at a safe level, etc.  Well, you know Flippy’s house is in foreclosure, and that we’ve been working with the bank for quite a long time, trying to work out a “modification” that will prevent us from being escorted from the house by the sheriff.  Our zip code is number one in the country for number of foreclosures, and on our tiny street, there are at least two houses empty from foreclosure.  A bank tried to sell a house identical to ours at an auction a few weeks ago, and the house was purchased by another bank for about $275,000.  They couldn’t even find a person willing to buy it.

We got news on Thursday that our modification was approved.  After assessing our profit loss statements from the last two years, bank account records, etc., they raised our principal to $380,000, and gave us an interest rate of 8% (when average rates for a mortgage are about 6%).  Our new mortgage payment will be a couple of hundred dollars higher than the payment we couldn’t make previously, and we’re paying on an amount which is $100K more than the market value of the house.  Isn’t that just the best news?  We were told by the mortgage company to either accept it, or to have the house put up for auction on April 10th.  They said we could not negotiate with them, and that any monthly expenses we have (like the hundreds of dollars in medical expenses), don’t count towards their assessment of “available income”.  Basically, they took last year’s tax return (which I had to throw together over a weekend), looked at the GROSS income, and decided that was enough to pay the mortgage.  They didn’t care about any other expenses that we need to live, like all the doctor bills we have since we both got sick.  If I needed, say, $1000 per month in dialysis, they don’t care. 

So, we’re up Poopy Creek without a paddle, because we cannot pay the new mortgage amount any more than we could pay the old amount.  The last couple of months we’ve had less than $100 in the bank by the time we get paid, and that’s without paying a $3100 mortgage payment!  The pets still live like little kings and queens, but Flippy and I barely eat because we can’t afford anything more than the most simple, inexpensive food.  I’m having flashbacks to 18 years ago, when I lived in a sleaze bag, “by the week” motel and lived on instant mashed potatoes and marshmallow pies.  I am going to finally give up Internet living and get a normal job, and that would allow us to pay the mortgage on the real value of our home.  We hope that maybe one of our parents can step in and buy our house from us (the bank will sell it to someone else for $275,000, but won’t let us live in it for that), and then we can pay the mortgage to them until we can buy it back.  I tried to get approved for a mortgage so that I could by the house, but without a 700+ FICO score, they aren’t giving anyone a mortgage.  That’s why the real estate market is in such a funk… there are lots of houses available, and there are people who want to buy some of them, but the pure “mortgage companies” are going out of business, and banks are barely approving anyone for loans.  The people getting approved have put down about 20% too, and that’s something I couldn’t do even if I was approved.

It was entirely medical problems and medical bills which put us in this situation.  We didn’t buy a new mansion, we’ve never been on a vacation, we don’t have a second car (or even a new car, for that matter).  I’ve applied for insurance for years and am never approved because of pre-existing problems.  Flippy has insurance, but the benefits have been reduced as quickly as the premiums have risen.  She used up her pharmacy benefit for the entire year in the month of January.  Neither of us can work without medical care and our prescriptions, but it’s come down to us working just to pay for the meds and doctor visits, and there’s hardly anything left over.

Thank you for allowing me to whine.  As I said, the pets are all still well-cared for and given the best of everything.  I’ve cut down on what I give myself rather than take anything from them.  And yes (if any visitors are thinking it), the Internet is a luxury that some people could cut from their budget, but you can’t cut off the Internet if you work from home via the Internet.

I’ll write a blog entry about pets next time.  I can’t afford to take in any new ones, so there will be no orphan kitten photos this kitten season.  I can still write about the pets ones we have, however… they’re still adorable, and the only thing cheerful around here!

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 03/22 at 02:37 AM
The Litterbox • (15) Comments • Permalink

Wednesday, March 05, 2008 , lunch time

MyPetVideos.TV: SPAMMERS!

I’m sorry it’s come to this, but I have no other choice.  For about the past six months, a website called MyPetVideos.tv has been spamming three of my email addresses.  They claim that I signed up to receive their weekly newsletter, but I certainly didn’t sign up with the email address I use to receive Wee Paws donations.  In fact, the three email addresses they spam are ones that I don’t use for subscriptions, so they must have trawled the web and scooped up addresses from pet-themed websites.  For a while, they didn’t even have “remove” instructions in their emails, but now they finally do.  The problem is that they ignore removal requests!  I’ve asked for all three of my email addresses to be removed three times, over the past three weeks, and it hasn’t been done.  My removal requests aren’t even acknowledged.  So, I’m calling them out as the spammers they are.  I don’t know what they’re up to, but I’m sure they didn’t sign me up three times because they thought they were doing me a favour.  Perhaps there’s some sort of spyware or malware in the videos on their website (which would then be downloaded to your computer if you view the videos), or maybe they’ve filled their pages with advertising… I just don’t know.  I refuse to go anywhere near their site because there’s something strange going on.  Normally, I’d report them to their ISP for spamming, but they decided to get hosting in South America so they can’t be touched.  That’s another hint that they’re up to no good… what big corporation decides to set up a legitimate website and then host it in Costa Rica?

So, pass the message along that MyPetVideos.tv is a malicious website and you should not download their videos or even load their site in your browser.  Legitimate websites ask your permission to put you on their mailing list.  Legitimate websites honor removal requests.  Legitimate websites answer your questions and concerns when you write to them and ask for proof that you signed up to receive their weekly emails.  This company is bad news and they’re taking advantage of pet lovers.  Please pass the word along, and please scan your computer for malware, spyware, viruses, etc. if you’ve been to their website.  If you haven’t been to their site, I think you should stay away.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 03/05 at 01:51 PM
The Litterbox • (3) Comments • Permalink

Guest post!

My name is Susan Daffron and I’m the founder of the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals (http://www.naprp.com) and the author of books on caring for adopted dogs and cats called Happy Hound (http://www.happyhoundbook.com) and Happy Tabby (http://www.happytabbybook.com).

Spay Day is February 26, this year and I thought I’d share a list of reasons why it’s so important to “fix” your pets because so many myths continue to exist when it comes to spaying and neutering. Here are three facts:

1.  Spayed or neutered animals are healthier. Female cats and dogs can’t get uterine or ovarian cancer and the possibility that the animal will get breast cancer is greatly reduced. Neutering reduces roaming and fighting and most animals lose the desire to constantly mark their territory.

2. Spayed or neutered animals live longer. Statistically, animals that have been spayed or neutered live an average of two to three years longer than unsterilized pets.

3. Spaying or neutering saves money. Spaying is a one-time cost that is tiny when compared to the cost of providing care for a mother and a litter (or litters!) of puppies or kittens.

It’s a myth that it’s good to let a pet have “just one litter” of puppies or kittens before you get her spayed. The bottom line is that by letting your pet have that “just one litter” you contribute to the problem of pet overpopulation. Even if you find homes for the puppies or kittens, those critters produce more critters and the problem grows exponentially and quickly. One cat or dog who has babies and whose babies have babies can be responsible for the birth of 50 to 200 kittens or puppies in just one year. The reproductive rate of dogs is 15 times that of humans and the reproductive rate of cats is 30 times that of humans.

Virtually every pet rescue requires that adopted pets be spayed or neutered. These people work tirelessly to save animals every day, so do your part to help them help the animals. Spay and neuter your pets!

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 03/05 at 12:00 PM
The Litterbox • (0) Comments • Permalink
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