Lauren Rymer, Baltimore Homeowner, Starts Hunger Strike To Protest Foreclosure

A Baltimore woman who is losing her home started a hunger strike on Monday morning to draw attention to the national foreclosure crisis and the difficulty borrowers face when they try to modify their mortgages.

"This is not about my story anymore, it's about representing a lot of people who are going through this," Lauren Rymer, 32, told HuffPost on Tuesday. "Homeowners aren't experts and we can't navigate the system. This is an impossible system to navigate."

Rymer's hunger strike and protest across from the Maryland State House in Annapolis has been effective; aside from news coverage, Rymer said she has been contacted by an official from Gov. Martin O'Malley's office about her situation. She is now hoping to hand over the deed in lieu of going through the foreclosure process. She said she'll eat if it looks like that process is going to work out.

Rymer, who has been steadily employed at a nonprofit agency, said she bought her home in 2006 with an interest-only loan and couldn't keep up with monthly payments after her property taxes increased by 55 percent. When she tried to get help with a modification, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, which owns her mortgage, said she couldn't refinance or modify.

She said she was told she did not qualify for help under the Obama administration's Home Affordable Modification Program, but she was not given a clear explanation for why not. She said she received a foreclosure notice on her front door last Tuesday.

Rymer said she doesn't understand why someone with a steady job who didn't splurge can't get a break.

"I bought a small house. I didn't go crazy. I took the best loan that was available to me at the time. It was before the market crashed," she said, hastily adding that she doesn't want sympathy. "People are in much worse situations than mine. I haven't lost my job. I don't have children. I'm a 32-year-old professional."

Homeowner advocates have roundly criticized the Obama administration for its efforts to help struggling borrowers avoid foreclosure. More borrowers have been booted from HAMP, for instance, than have been given a shot at keeping their homes, as mortgage servicers drag their feet on requests, constantly losing paperwork and giving borrowers mixed signals about their status.

In October, a small group of homeowners protested HAMP at the state capitol in Salem, Ore.

WATCH: Rymer explains her hunger strike on "The Dylan Ratigan Show"

Comments

[RightToCancel]

06:14 PM on 11/30/2010

Commercial law which is uniform worldwide and governs commercial transactions and contracts:
UCC 3-104(e) An instrument is a "note" if it is a promise and is a "draft" if it is an order. If an instrument falls within the definition of both "note" and "draft," a person entitled to enforce the instrument may treat it as either.

UCC 9-102(65) "Promissory note" means an instrument that evidences a promise to pay a monetary obligation, does not evidence an order to pay, and does not contain an acknowledgment by a bank that the bank has received for deposit a sum of money or funds.

NOW what all this mean?? When was the last time you checked your ORGINAL note??

For all homeowners fighting with NO HELP! http://righttocancel.com/

TJ "The Central Bank is an institution of the most deadly hostility existing against the principles and form of our Constitution if the American people allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.”

[Law-school-lady]

01:52 PM on 11/18/2010

Please keep covering this story. We need an update.

[MyResponsibility]

10:14 AM on 01/03/2011

As I had predicted, the story would die when it no longer helped achieve a political end.  Her foreclosure time has come and gone, and not a peep on the outcome.  Her story was BS, had she won her quest, this forum would have been all over it.  Crickets...

[Gabe61]

02:26 AM on 11/11/2010

1 million letters by Nov 16th 2010 to Washington DC from homeowners
Bank of America, J.P. Morgan home loan officials to testify before Congress on November 16th 2010

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/pol...rgan_home.html

This is our Chance to let the elected officials know how we feel. I believe if we flood them with letters we the people might have a Chance for our voices to be heard. I know they will not read all letters, but can you imagine when a committee receive this much mail?

I sent the following email to Propublica. You should send one too to your local media.

Bank of America, J.P. Morgan home loan officials to testify before Congress on November 16th 2010
Please help, by announcing on your website that we need to send a minimum of 1 million letters from homeowners with troubled mortgages to this address by NOV 16th 2010.

Maybe this way elected officials will be paying attention to solve the current housing crisis.



U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
534 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
[phone] begin_of_the_skype_highlighting [phone] end_of_the_skype_highlighting


http://banking.senate.gov/public/ind...formation.FAQs

[Law-school-lady]

02:59 PM on 11/10/2010

Will the Banking Cartel Be Let Off by the State Attorneys General with a Slap on the Wrist?

The breaking news seems as if the state Attorney Generals are going to cut a deal fining the banks a mere fraction of the money that the banks made from unlawful foreclosures.

All of us homeowners should pressure our state Attorney Generals to press racketeering charges against the big bank executives.

These unlawful foreclosures are a pattern of illegal activity carried out as part of an enterprise that is owned or controlled by those who are engaged in the illegal activity, or in other words racketeering. I have heard Attorney General Richard Cordray of Ohio use these words in connection with describing the unlawful foreclosures that he is investigating. If the Attorneys General do not bring CRIMINAL racketeering charges against the bankster-gangsters, the Democrats will be complicit in the crime of illegally throwing hard working women, children, and men from their homes into the streets.

Don't let Chris Dodd and others let these crooks off with a minor slap on the wrist.

[TheHolyFatman]

12:19 PM on 11/10/2010

Okay, I know her personally. The neighborhood we live in is one of a few major tax bases in the City of Baltimore. The City residents are taxed outrageously simply because only a few neighborhoods can actually generate a healthy revenue base for the city. The outrageous taxes are to offset the blighted areas of little to no revenue. is this fair? no. Can we live in the county? No. Why not? Because our options are affordable housing with walkable communities or overblown overpriced DC suburbs that have little to no community. Sure, it's OUR DECISION to live in the city. We get that. When Lauren bought her home she made the best decisions for herself financially, in relation to where she worked, (less than five miles away) in relation to her church and her friends. She was sold a bag of goods much like myself: "Buy this, it's the AMERICAN DREAM!!! You can buy it with this fancy schmancy loan, and it won't reset until 2009!" They didn't tell us the state would realize the property tax equation was not in their favor and they'd change it, effectively raising everyone's taxes due to the over inflated prices of housing. You would think that since they tagged it to "market prices" we'd get an assessment that is effectively lower, right? Well, they're refusing to reassess the properties now. And it was The Ehrlich Administration that DID THIS.....

[frank day]

06:19 PM on 11/10/2010

I'm guessing that foreclosures and more blight won't help with the tax situation.

[EthicalJournalist]

11:02 AM on 11/11/2010

I lived in Maryland under the Ehrlich administration; I live in Europe now, but was watching the election closely. It would have been a travesty if Ehrlich had won; as far as I could tell, his main interest was giving more and more benefits to big ag (although the few remaining small farmers, who were apparently ignorant that they were actually being systematically ruined) and his buddies.

I hope O'Malley's government does the right thing. I lived in the city of Baltimore when O'Malley was mayor, and it seemed to be a city perking up after a long period of doldrums. As another comment says, the fallout of Ehrlich's self-serving, cockamamie decisions will hurt the city by further eroding its tax base and causing people who like to live and work in cities to leave.

I wish the lady every good thing in getting her situation straightened out; it seems as if she's asking little enough.

[rebel9999]

10:40 AM on 11/10/2010

Hunger strikes are silly. No one cares if you stop eating.

She has to be a liberal to come up with this brilliant idea.

[Tee McDonald]

02:02 PM on 11/10/2010

People do die, you know, from starvation. Are you saying that no one cares if you die? Actually, in this country, it may be true...especially banks (which in her case if the state). If she dies, they can foreclose even sooner.

Hunger strikes can get attention--which she got--and embarrass all involved, especially if the person dies. Her risking her life to publicize an issue should be commended. It's a tactic that's been used effectively by many historical figures--Ghandi, among them.

[frank day]

06:20 PM on 11/10/2010

Yeah, cause everyone ignored Ghandi! *rolls eyes*

[AustinG]

10:22 AM on 11/10/2010

The story doesn't add up to me. Not to mention the I am not going to eat pay attention to me aspect of it. It seems kind of childish to me. Like a child holding their breath in an effort to get their way. Nobody is stopping her from eating, but herself. If her property taxes went up then I would have sympathy for her. Some states have property taxes as high as 5%. Not sure what it is in Maryland.

Most likely though she is having trouble refinancing because she is under water. There are some things that could be addressed with this. Why can't the same bank refinance her loan without having to pay the balance down enough to meet a current appraised value? The bank isn't putting itself more at risk by the homeowner not doing that. In fact homeowners would be more likely be able to pay off the loan then.

[vermontcathy]

09:43 AM on 11/10/2010

This isn't making sense. She claims to have a fixed interest rate for 30 years. But if you have an interest-only loan, at some point that has to change or else you NEVER pay off the loan. The jump from $1500 to $2100 per month (as shown on the video) can NOT be due just to taxes. This is saying the payment went up $600/mo and she says that is all due to a 55% increase in property taxes. $600 is 55% of $1091. So if all of this is true (that the $600 increase is due to taxes, and it was a 55% jump), then her taxes were $1091/month and now are $1691/mo. That's $20,292/yr. That can't be true. I own a townhouse and pay $2,500/yr.

Something is not adding up. Here's what I suspect. It was an interest-only loan for the first few years, and then she was expected to pay more each month in order to start paying down the principal. So her payment could go up even with a fixed interest rate.

[krismae76md]

11:35 AM on 11/10/2010

This blog explains the numbers better:

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/business/realestate/blog/2010/11/homeowner_facing_foreclosure_goes_on_hunger_strike.html

Her home was assessed for under $100,000 prior to the increase. Baltimore has a homestead credit that was in place for the first couple years she was in the house. When her home was reassessed, the homestead credit went away AND her home was valued at way more than it was when she bought it. Also, HuffPo says it increased by only 55%, but in the blog it says her taxes doubled.

[rel77]

08:28 AM on 11/10/2010

I have no sympathy for this person, sorry. An interest only loan is one of the stupidest contracts a human being can sign. She should have kept renting until she could actually afford a down payment and a real, fixed rate loan, like I and many of my friends have. You need a baseline minimum of intelligence to sign a mortgage, and she obviously didn't have it.
I would add, however, that some of the loans available out there should not be legal in the first place, because they are designed to fail. Hopefully the new consumer financial protection agency will address that.

[avg american]

08:15 AM on 11/10/2010

I just saw the documentary, Inside Job http://www.sonyclassics.com/insidejob/ and tomorrow I am going to buy some more tickets to the documentary.

Then I am going to give them away.

I do not know what depressed me more.

The absolute corruption of our government or the fact that there were 14 people in the theater.

Folks, this depression is not your fault and this movie will explain why it is not your fault..

If it’s a choice between missing a meal or seeing this documentary… See the documentary. It will be the best 10.00 you could have invested your money in…. no pun intended.

Where is the FBI??? Where is the IG??? Where are our pundits??? Where are the law enforcement agencies?
Asleep at the wheel apparently.

Calling all Americans who suffered because of the financial crisis. I understand that you might think that words like derivatives, finances, budgeting, CDO, and credit swaps are difficult to understand. I promise you that you will walk out of that documentary understanding exactly what happened

[RJII]

01:42 PM on 11/30/2010

interesting. I will try to view it.

[avg american]

08:14 AM on 11/10/2010

America this depression is not your fault Big corp America took your homes, money and your opportunities. The movie Inside Job explains how they did it. Go see it, bring a friend.
http://www.sonyclassics.com/insidejob/
Produced, written and directed by Charles Ferguson.

Many thanks to the credible people that stepped forward to support the making of the movie.”


Every 99er should see this movie. It will explain why you cannot find a job.

Every American who lost their retirements savings. You will see where it went.

Americans who had their homes foreclosed on. You will understand the racket that was set up against you.

Excellent explanation on CDO’s and credit swaps. A third grader could get it.

Many thanks to the credible people that stepped forward to support the making of the movie.”

[Sundialsvc4]

06:54 AM on 11/10/2010

Don't kill yourself, Lauren. Don't go there. Turn away.

You are not alone, and your voice is well heard. Fight against crime: don't needlessly sacrifice your own life to it.

[rocknrollinhoneybadger]

05:32 AM on 11/10/2010

1. If you cannot afford the home under normal straight forward terms then you cannot afford it.
2. The bank did not make you sign the mortgage, you did that
3. The bank is not responsible for your inability to understand your own finances.
4. The bank is not responsible for the taxes you owe on the home going up.

[Sundialsvc4]

07:01 AM on 11/10/2010

... but circumstances change, and although "this is just a contract, not a blood oath," it is also a contract that keeps people in warm, dry places in the terrible Maryland winters.

Even if this particular mortgage had nothing to do with the rampant fraud that has infested nearly every aspect of our national financial landscape, there is still a place for mercy and for negotiation in the face of winter.

Banks are emphatically not interested in doing this, because they are also insurance companies who would have to pay; and they are also securities-peddlers who sold the same mortgages hundreds of times. The plight of the homeowner does not figure into this equation; not at all.

"If they are about to die, then they had better do it..." Are you seriously okay with that?

Remember, then, another line that you'll hear at Christmastime: "They are man's. This little girl is Ignorance; this little boy is Want. Fear them both!"

I'm not interested in putting millions of people out into the cold of winter for any reason at all, but especially not just to prop up the doomed "business (sic) model" of a fraudster.

[lcr999]

03:37 PM on 11/10/2010

There are plenty of cases to put my sympathy---people who lost jobs and are loosing their homes, or people who have to move for job reasons and can;t sell. This is neither of those. Here, with an interest only loan, she effectively entered into a lifetime lease, and now she wants out. And regardless of what the article says, the numbers dont add up...The $600 increase can not be just due to taxes.

[rebel9999]

10:43 AM on 11/10/2010

Persoanl accountability is a thing of the past. We live in the United States of Victems.

[Peter Combs]

12:00 AM on 11/10/2010

Something is wrong with this picture...if she is still working and hasn't lost income due to the economy and is merely in trouble due to her Property Taxes...why does she deserve special help?

In that case my taxes have gone up too, my health insurance premiums have rised 45% since 2006...I want someone to re-write my mortgage..."where's mine"?

SHe made a mistake...she bought a house she couldn't afford longterm, sounds like she was buying relying on a bounce in the price of her house.

If she deserves help with no kids....EVERYONE should stop eating...and start begging...

[frank day]

08:43 AM on 11/10/2010

45% increase in taxes.

Thank You Banksters for destroying our tax base.

[NHGranite]

10:45 PM on 11/09/2010

HAMP guidelines allow you to get a modification if your house payment is over 31% of your income. Including taxes. Only for Freddie and Fannie notes. Banks do have other mod programs. So few people have gotten a mod that it is ridiculous and banks should give back whatever funds they got for HAMP

[Sundialsvc4]

07:09 AM on 11/10/2010

In the original and venerable business-model of "banking," banks would come to the table and "work something out" because to get something is preferable to the alternative of getting nothing.

But when Glass-Steagall was repealed, the shenanigans that led to the First Great Depression promptly returned ... and brought with it The Second Great Depression, which we are right-now IN.

Insurance, banking, and finance concerns got together under one roof such that none of them had any "loss" that they could not pass-off to another part of themselves; nor any "gain" which they cold not choose to keep. Billions of dollars in cash payments kept Governments fat, dumb and very happy. But who's losing? The actual borrowers. And, the actual investors.

"Mortgage-backed" securities ... with no clear title, and in obvious many-multiples of the physical collateral known to exist. "Credit-default swaps" ... with no actual capacity to make-good on even a small percentage of the promises made. This is FRAUD, ladies and gents, and this means FELONY.

Lauren is reacting in a horribly misguided way that I hope she will immediately reconsider. But it isn't wrong to force this issue to come to a head. 310 million people in this country (and billions more outside of it) should not stand by and allow just a few thousand people to defraud them without a shred of mercy.