Lisa Simpson
May 28,2009
In: Bank Foreclosures

Boston Bank Foreclosures

Boston

To understand Boston bank foreclosures a little big of digging is required about foreclosures and Boston, placed against the background of the present financial crisis.

Boston is the capital of Massachusetts – one of the old cities of the country. It is the largest in New England. Boston is a very compact city because of its early foundations. The Boston accent is widely known to be the language of the Kennedy’s and the graduates from Harvard. The colleges and universities of the area have an impact on the local economy. They are the prime employers and also it is because of them that high tech industries gravitate towards the city and the neighbouring regions.

Experts say that demographics are closely related to the housing crisis. In Boston 50% are Whites (non-Hispanic), 25% Blacks and the others are a sprinkling of Native Americans, Asians etc.

Boston bank foreclosures have reached such staggering numbers that it has become a cause of concern. It is the same picture across the country with variations in concentration from one place to another. The Boston bank foreclosures numbers show that the city has been badly mauled by the housing crisis. By Boston bank foreclosures are meant those units against whom the banks, being the lenders, have brought foreclosure proceedings. Boston bank foreclosures occur when the borrowers of home mortgages fail to pay their mortgage dues and default. This triggers off the process of foreclosure.

There have been so many Boston bank foreclosures that protestors in March 2009 demanded the banks to put a hold on the proceedings. People from a cross section comprising of elected officials, church personnel, workers and residents – all victimized by Boston bank foreclosures protested against the high handed behavior of banks. They accused the lenders of having resorted to predatory lending. It is this that has led to the abnormal increase in Boston bank foreclosures.

The foreclosure evictions have led to a rise in homelessness and more people have become dependent on food stamps. The protestors went around in a bus halting at strategic points. They draped a tape across one of the vacant properties that screamed “White Collar Crime Scene.” There were shouts outside the office of the Bank of America – “People get thrown out, banks get bailed out.”

The John Hancock Tower, the tallest structure in Boston, was sold recently for half its purchase price – thanks to foreclosure. It was sold for $660 million after having been bought for $1.3 billion in 2009.