My Father Is A Proud Man

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, a New York Times best seller, written by Matthew Desmond, truly captures the lives of not only people who are getting or have gotten evicted, but also the landlords who have to evict these people. Desmond follows the lives of eight families including Sherrena, Arleen, Tobin, the Hinkstons, Lamar, Scott and several others, to discover more about their lives and how they have dealt with evictions in Milwaukee. The evictions of these eight families take place all other Milwaukee, the Northside, Southside, Westside and Eastside.

Evictions have a mental price on kids, who will remember that event for the rest of their lives. Desmond shows the huge impact it takes on the children who are not responsible for their upbringing and can ingrain the “poverty mentality” early on. An

The story of Fun with Dick and Jane is one about a very up-and-coming business man who loses his job as a result of his employer’s economic difficulty. Consequently, these circumstances leave his family not only in a financial crisis, but in clear and utter hopelessness. From the grass literally being pulled out of their front yard to their home foreclosure, Dick and Jane faced tragic difficulties that many others faced in the recent foreclosure crisis. Dick and Jane felt so desperate that they decided the most appropriate solution was stealing what they needed to feed their family. This sense of desperation is what all those recovering from a foreclosure feel. Often times if families survive the immediate hardships of foreclosure, then there are lasting ramifications such as poor credit, emotional stress, and the loss of their home that they must face. In addition, they will struggle with obtaining future loans, be subject to higher interest rates, and subject to higher security deposits for utilities. These circumstances make it entirely difficult to recover from foreclosure and next to impossible to own a home once again. However, among these trials there are methods those recovering from a foreclosure can use to obtain a home such as a land contract. A land contract is a way to purchase a home with financing through the seller rather than a bank. There is also a time period in which monthly payments are made, and at the end of that time the buyer must pay for the home.

The housing crisis of the late 2000s rocked the economy and changed the landscape of the real estate business for years to come. Decades of people purchasing houses unfordable houses and properties with lenient loans policies led to a collective housing bubble. When the banking system faltered and the economy wilted, interest rates were raised, mortgages increased, and people lost their jobs amidst the chaos. This all culminated in tens of thousands of American losing their houses to foreclosures and short sales, as they could no longer afford the mortgage payments on their homes. The United States entered a recession and homeownership no longer appeared to be a feasible goal as many questioned whether the country could continue to support a middle-class. Former home owners became renters and in some cases homeless as the American Dream was delayed with no foreseeable return. While the future of the economy looked bleak, conditions gradually improved. American citizens regained their jobs, the United States government bailed out the banking industry, and regulations were put in place to deter such events as the mortgage crash from ever taking place again. The path to homeowner ship has been forever altered, as loans in general are now more difficult to acquire and can be accompanied by a substantial down payment.

In 2008 the real estate market crashed because of the Graham-Leach-Bliley Act and Commodities Futures Modernization Act, which led to shady mortgage lending or “liar loans” (Hartman). The loans primarily approved for lower income and middle class borrowers with little income or no job income verification, which lead to many buyers purchasing homes they could not afford because everyone wants a piece of the American dream; homeownership. Because of “reckless lending to lower- and middle-income borrowers who could not afford to repay their loans many of the home buyers lost everything when the market collapsed” (Tankersley 3). Homeowners often continued to live in their houses for months or years without paying any

In Summary New York Times Bestseller book Evicted written by Matthew Desmond tells a story involving eight families who are trapped in the affordable housing crisis. The book illustrates true events that take place between 2008 and 2009 in Milwaukee’s South Side. Matthew Desmond’s Evicted is unwavering and blunt in portraying poverty in America. It looks at first-hand accounts of real events with real people. The book is narrated in third person, which allows the characters to tell their own story in their own words. Desmond initially started his research in 2008 while he was a PhD student in sociology at the University of Wisconsin. During this time he moved into a trailer park which was owned by one of the landlords

For the last several years, the one issue that has been bringing the United States into a state of trouble that it has not been seen since the great depression has been the monstrous Foreclosure problem. Thousands of people have lost their houses. Thousands of people have faced the dangers of debt and chaos. Thousands of people lives have been ruined because of the mistakes that Americans have done in this nation. In order to solve the problem, one must take a look at how it started and how this depression began. Around eight-nine years ago, the market in housing caused many people to chase after it. This caused a mistake of creating a domino affect that has hurt banks from lending out the high amount of money to people and finding out

I realized that eviction has a domino effect throughout the tenants entire life. I agree with Desmond that affordable housing should be a right for everyone in this country, and I think his proposed housing voucher system would be a successful option in the United States. I also realized one of the themes throughout the book was the constant exploitation of “The Hood.” Sherrena was the queen of this practice in this book. We also learned so much about Desmond and how much work he put into this project. I was surprised to read about his past and his own struggles with losing his childhood home to the bank. My favorite part of the book was in the “About This Project” section. I was shocked to read that Matt actually was intertwined with these people, and he actually wrote about himself. I thought it was really cool that he was, “the friend” that would loan money to Arleen or play spades with Lamar. I thought it was really awesome that Matt helped Lamar paint the spare unit. I think one of the most astonishing things that Matt wrote was that after he moved to a wealthy part of Massachusetts, he missed Milwaukee and the people he left there. I think this really speaks to the connections he made with the people in this

The author had high expectation for this house, but fails to realize that her family was constantly moving from one poor district of Chicago to another. The addition of a family member every time they moved didn’t help their economic status either due to the increase in budget when you have one more child to take care of.

The desire for home ownership is something embedded in our DNA. Claiming property and owning a house is a critical part of the “American Dream.” Home ownership represents more than just a place to rest your head at night. Your home is the environment that serves as a setting for your journey through life. It’s the place of your children’s first steps, family birthdays, barbeques, amongst many other significant events. Your home is the backdrop that describes you and your family. Although many American’s were financially hurt by the trillions lost in the home equity market during the housing bubble, there is and will always be a desire to own a home. The most vital part is that American’s who lost their homes during the crash, learn from their past, so that they do not repeat a foreclosure.

Mom lost her job, father lost a great deal of money, my brother lost his car. We couldn’t get what we wanted anymore. Father was struggling with his job as people began to panic. The first couple of years wasn’t as bad. We lost a few things but we were getting by. That was until our home was being taken away. We were kicked out and had no place to go. My father had found out about a place called Hooverville. It was a place for people who were homeless. When we went there it wasn’t exactly at all what I expected. There were tiny little shacks made out of scraps of metal and glass. We weren’t entirely fond of it but we had to make

The excerpt we read from the book Evicted moved many people. It provoked powerful emotions and caused many to rethink they their feelings about the tails of told by far too many. Evicted the story of families on both side of the housing epidemic focusing on renters and landlords. I will be comparing my own views and using my experiences to gain a deeper understanding of: the people effected; the impact it has on families of both sides; the lesser and the lessee; the reason we are in this crises; and what can be done. Evicted is no doubt a piece that can stir the emotions of everyone who choices to sit down and read it.

Michael Lewis exposes the truth about the American real estate problem. Millions of American have bought homes they cannot pay for it. Banks have lent out mortgages that people cannot pay it. Propagandists have promised that real estate value will always rise. Some days it seems that partial of the nation is financially under water. Michael Lewis wrote this article to acknowledge the consequence of the horrific real estate crash, and the financial consequences that will get to the middle classes of people.

More middle class and minority families than ever are now underwater in their mortgages, and have zero to negative wealth after the Great Recession that followed the 2000 housing boom (Potts 7). Even those who kept their homes saw their values drop due to the declined neighborhood worth. My childhood home’s peak value was over $200,000, but my parents listed it on the market with the hope of selling for just $175,000 when they wanted to move to lower their mortgage. There were never any foreclosures in our neighborhood, the house is in one of the best school systems in the state, and it had a great location, yet the value dropped more significantly than it had in twenty years. This was a situation many homeowners didn’t know was possible

Heroes; something we all aspire to be, but easily recognize in others. Wait, how do we define what makes a hero, a hero? A hero is one who is kind, courageous, smart, determined and selfless. They often do what is better for the greater good and not themselves. This is seen in both Greek and Modern heroes, whether it is cutting off Medusa’s head or defeating the Riddler, they show these qualities in one way or another. We also see these qualities in parents, true everyday heroes. While they may not have super strength or the ability to fly, parents are the ultimate heroes in our lives, for they love for us without judgement and will always be there when we need them most. My father, William Romero, is a hero since it takes a true hero to