Mortgage Crisis: Learning from the UK

As the U.S. struggles to remedy its subprime mortgage crisis, other countries-especially the UK-are having their own economic problems. But the UK deals with mortgage woes in unique ways that may teach us a new approach.

Homes prices in Great Britain have fallen by 25 percent, foreclosures are at record levels, and unemployment related to the housing sector is rising. At the beginning of May, the UK central bank warned that inflation is expected to threaten their economy, just as it has damaged ours in the U.S.

The same "perfect storm" of negative economic factors converged about nine months ago in this country, which may have given our British counterparts time to evaluate their own situation and come up with a strategy for dealing with the problems once they washed ashore. Now, Americans wonder if they can learn any lessons from the ways that mortgage problems in the UK are being addressed.

Mortgage payment holiday

For one thing, borrowers are checking the terms of their mortgages because the majority of them may be eligible for a so-called "payment holiday." We've been there, done that with so-called "moratoriums." But what's unique about the UK idea is that most homeowners are already able to take advantage of this payment moratorium, even if they aren't facing foreclosure, because it's a standard operating procedure for lenders in that country. The downside is that the outstanding payments get tacked on to the back end of the loan as principal, but that deferred pain may be worth it to many who are facing the loss of their homes due to extraordinary circumstances.

Mortgage struggles in the U.S.

Critics argue that it's just a ploy by banks and lenders to make more money, and nobody really argues with that point of view. After all, lenders are in the business to lend, so that they can make a profit from those who borrow. But various programs here in the U.S. have done little to stem the tide of foreclosures and falling prices, as recent economic reports confirm. Lenders themselves are now short on cash, and are stingy about approving loan applications. Forgiving billions or trillions of dollars in debt owed by homeowners may not work either, since the bailout money will come from taxpayers. In other words, we're robbing taxpayers to pay homeowners, but both demographics are largely the same person. Robbing Peter to pay Pauline may have a net zero effect if they both live under the same roof and pay the same bills.

Perhaps the UK approach is a more realistic and proactively effective one. But it's too soon to tell, because the crisis in Great Britain is more recent than the one that's wearing us down here at home. By the time we find out whether their plans are better than ours- or whether neither are viable solutions-both economies may be in far worse trouble. We can only hope that turns out not to be the case.