The Bounds of Generosity (Pt.2 of 5)

At lunch, Jim listened to Anabell’s tale of woe about a friend of hers who had just had a home foreclosed because of having purchased it on a subprime basis. One of those new mortgage products that if you didn’t read the fine print with extreme care it was designed to come back and bite you severely within the first year or two. He had heard about them, but didn’t involve himself in real estate much these days.

“What’s the beef?” he told her. “Most of those mortgage holders deserve what they get. They go to closings without a lawyer, they trust whoever comes at them with a sweet-looking deal, they’re trying to get the most house they can for a song. They don’t really understand the market, the product or the financials. But they want to look smart and they think God gave them the right to have anything they happen to glance at. They live way over their heads. What do you expect? Look at some of those starter castles out there in the township! And most of those folks come from a working class background, and they think they’re so smart for being able to have that kind of a house on that income. They think they’re moving up in the world and that’s the most important thing they think about. Serves them right, and they’re getting just exactly what they deserve.”

“Jim, that’s not fair,” defended Anabelle. “Charlie and his wife aren’t really those kind of people. They work hard for every cent they make. They have to stretch two incomes. Why shouldn’t they try to make the most of a good thing? I say it’s the mortgage lenders who should be not only investigated by Congress but they should be roasted for every dollar they charge in exorbitant foreclosure fees. Those guys are cheats right from the git-go, and they should have to pay people like Charlie for taking advantage of them.” Anabell was on a roll. It would be a while, Jim knew, before she’d settle down. He ordered another glass of wine. It might be a long afternoon.

Fortunately, at two o’clock, his PDA alarm went off, reminding him that it was time to go to the Reach for the Stars Board meeting, and he was relieved. Anabelle, while beautiful and sweet and sexy, had an occasional streak of just pure stubbornness. No matter how gently he had tried to pry her attention from her mortgage speech, it just wouldn’t work. He was actually relieved that he had another appointment to go to today. Maybe next week they’d have an afternoon to themselves. He hoped so; it had been a while since their last leisurely encounter.