DOWNSIDE

Foreclosure Deal to Spike Home Seizures

Delinquent borrowers to be hit hard.

There’s always a flip side. The $25 billion settlement that the five largest U.S. banks agreed to pay for roles they played in the mortgage meltdown will likely result in a wave of home seizures, Bloomberg reports. Translation: while the chances of a long-term housing recovery increase, delinquent borrowers are going to be hit hard. Foreclosures were slowed as attorneys battled with the banks for more than a year, but now that there’s an agreement, it’s time for some property seizures. With such a backlog of foreclosures, there are many Americans stuck in houses they can’t afford. But as many as 2 million Americans will reap the benefits of the settlement, the largest of its kind in history and the biggest civil-action suit ever against the housing industry.