It’s not all bad news. 
On Monday, Texana Hollis was evicted from her home in southwest Detroit where she had lived for sixty years because her son failed to pay the mortgage (he apparently took out a reverse mortgage to pay for repairs for the house; the money was not so used). Court officers came to her house, removed her and left her sitting outside on the sidewalk next to her furniture and world
Fortunately for Ms. Hollis, the government — yes, the evil Freedom-sucking government — took pity on her and decided to help. A Department of House and Urban Development spokesperson announced yesterday that it would pay the property taxes and allow Ms. Hollis to return to her home:
Texana Hollis was evicted Monday and her belongings were placed outside the home where she had lived for nearly six decades. Her son Warren Hollis said he didn’t pay the bill for several years and disregarded eviction notices.
“I screwed it up good,” he told the Detroit Free Press.
HUD foreclosed on the property after Warren Hollis failed to pay property taxes to maintain a reverse mortgage taken out in 2002.
HUD spokesman Brian Sullivan told The Detroit News on Wednesday that the department would pay the taxes, remove the padlocks from the doors and let Texana Hollis return to the home.
“We were absolutely thunderstruck when we understood that a 101-year-old woman was put out of her home,” Sullivan told the Free Press.
Sullivan said the department has told family members that Hollis can return to the house as soon as she is released from Henry Ford Hospital, where she was taken after the eviction.
Warren Hollis said he and his mother were “overjoyed” at the word from HUD.
Sometimes, you screw up. Sometimes you rely on a family member to get by, and they screw up. Sometimes they take a mortgage out on your house and then use the money for Blog-knows-what. (I used to do mortgage foreclosure litigation, and this happens far more frequently than you can imagine, and the victims are often seniors.)
I’d like to think that we are a nation that overwhelmingly favors cutting a woman — a woman who has lived for over a century! — a break. Yet, as I write this, I’m already hearing the howling from the Teabilly contingent: “Tough luck! Why should I have to pay for her property taxes! Liberty!” These are folks who cheered for the death of a 30 year-old uninsured sick man. Surely these folks don’t care about a little old lady in Detroit.
We’re becoming a nation of savages.
(I hate to leave you on a sour note. You’re welcome.)
[cross-posted at ABLC]
beltane
I’m sure the glibertarians will be apoplectic over this outrageous act of decency and attack on personal freedom.
Quaker in a Basement
Note to banksters: The whole “Throw Elderly Widows Out on the Street” thing is a stereotype you want to avoid reinforcing.
Linda Featheringill
I’m glad to hear the news. I was worried about the lady. I read that she was taken to the hospital because she lapsed into confusion, which is not surprising.
That lady needs to stay put. She just might not be able to cope with new surroundings. Such a move might kill her.
kc
From the article:
Sounds like someone should be investigatin Mr. Texana for elder abuse.
fasteddie9318
I’m afraid there’s a more important question that needs to be asked here. Will HUD offer to pay for Mrs. Hollis to hire a large, well-muscled man, or possibly an out-of-work NFL punter or placekicker, to kick her deadbeat son in the nuts every morning?
kc
Damn effed-up formatting!
kc
Mr. Hollis, not Mr. Texana. God damn it. I haven’t even had a drink.
Belafon (formerly anonevent)
@fasteddie9318: If not, that’s a charity I would donate to. Though they would probably have to pick from the Lions.
daveNYC
Your headline and post mention foreclosure and not paying the mortgage. The quoted text says it was a reverse mortgage, so there’s no mortage payment, and that the problem was unpaid taxes. Lower in the post you do mention the taxes though.
Also too, there a link to the article that the quotes are from?
Also too two, can we set up a fund to get someone to punch Warren in the junk?
Jude
Wow, six comments in, and no one’s raggin’ on ABL for being angry, or black, or not black enough, or whatever? Is this a record?
I’m sure one of those douchesponges will be by soon enough, but I’mma enjoy this while it lasts.
EDIT: Apparently, ten comments in. Stupid slow fingers.
Paul in KY
So glad the lady will be back in her house. Maybe another trustee than Mr. Hollis can take care of her fiducary duties.
Edit: Svensker has a good point about Mr. Hollis maybe being too old for taking care of his mother.
Svensker
If she’s 101, how old is her son?
Maybe he’s in his 80s and not got all his pool cues either.
singfoom
Good for her. I’m very glad her house has been returned to her. There’s an agency trying to deal with a PR blackeye. Unfortunately, this is the exception, and not the rule.
Slightly OT, but relevant (IMHO)
Hopefully the litigation currently grinding through the courts will change the behavior of the banks (I know this was HUD that foreclosed on her) in the near term, to stop foreclosing on people erroneously and actually handing in the proper paperwork to prove chain of title.
Until all that bullshit stops, we’re still going to see people getting thrown out of their homes even if they owe nothing.
My favorite story like this (old, from 2010): They foreclosed on the wrong house
Shit like this will keep on happening unless a strong signal is sent to the banks that it will not be tolerated.
David Hunt
The irony that the ad at the top of the page for my current view is for reverse mortgages is not lost on me.
Commenting at Balloon Juice since 1937
This proves that property taxes are evil.
celticragonchick
@beltane:
She obviously should have bootstrapped herself and started working at Wal Mart to pay her bills.
//
However, I think most glibitarians would come down on the side that property taxes are wrong in the first place (never mind that is how you pay for the upkeep of the community where you live) and would not have favored anybody from the government entering her house at all.
celticragonchick
@beltane:
She obviously should have bootstrapped herself and started working at Wal Mart to pay her bills.
//
However, I think most glibitarians would come down on the side that property taxes are wrong in the first place (never mind that is how you pay for the upkeep of the community where you live) and would not have favored anybody from the government entering her house at all.
Dave
This is just more government interference in how the private market efficiently disposes of centenarians. I expect Rep. Paul will address this travesty in the next debate.
celticragonchick
@fasteddie9318:
I would bet real money that he is somewhat senile as well. He sounds like the sort that the Travellers love to target for building repair scams.
fasteddie9318
@celticragonchick:
I suspect you’re right. They’d be upset that she got evicted for failure to pay taxes in the first place; now, if her house had burned down because there was no fire department because we’d abolished property taxes in Galt’s Gulch, they’d be OK with that. Freedom is messy, break a few eggs, etc.
daveNYC
@David Hunt: Actually, reverse mortgages are not automatically evil items. Properly regulated, they do make for good options for people who have a home and want cash now as opposed to passing the home on to someone after they die. They’re also very easy to abuse and use to screw people out of their homes for very little cash.
e
I’ll need to know what her countertops are made of before I know how to feel about this. I’m suspecting they’re granite.
Dennis SGMM
With respect, we’re becoming a nation of people who will turn on each other to preserve whatever they think they have left. It’s not pretty. It’s so not pretty that this is one of those rare times when I’m glad to be old so that I don’t have to witness the sequel.
Maude
@e:
WIN
The Other Chuck
@Quaker in a Basement:
Why? When have they ever faced a single consequence for it?
Suffern ACE
@kc: I’m assuming he put that car and those other things in his mothers name. Otherwise, wouldn’t he owe taxes on that “loan?” I don’t think there is a rule that says what the money on the reverse mortgage has to be spent on, but I am assuming it can’t be gifted away. Where’s Yutsano…
j low
@daveNYC: All reverse mortgages are heavily regulated and approved by HUD. They still suck. Borrowers end up with a bank lien and a HUD lien on their home. What borrowers are rarely told clearly and repeatedly so they completely understand it(you must be elderly to get one)is that their home will be mortgaged for 150% of the appraised value. That means they had better be able to do whatever maintenance needs to been before they die with the reverse mortgage, because they will never get another penny out of your home. Many reverse mortgages just pay off the balance of a regular mortgage with no cash going to the borrower so that in 2 years when the furnace dies the owner is fucked. That is usually the time they find out the extent of the banks interest in their home. Fees are charged up front as well so refinancing out of a reverse mortgage is virtually impossible as well.
edit: grammar fail.
joes527
I dunno ….
I have a hard time getting excited about a one-off solution for the sentimental case.
Don’t get me wrong — this is all good for Ms. Hollis. I’m really happy for her. But multiply her by 10,000 and realize the other 9,999 folks in her position aren’t going to be magically saved.
High profile solutions in hallmark hall of fame scenarios is not what is needed. Without systematic banking reform, it is just a feel-good cherry on top of a giant shit sundae.
KG
@joes527: systematic banking reform would be great, but it’ll end up in court and the courts will take the teeth out of the laws. That’s what happened with the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) which included a damages provision that called for “real damages” or statutory damages of $2,000. The Supreme Court said, that the statutory damages clause put a cap on damages in a TILA case. So, your lender lies to you or doesn’t give you all the required disclosures, you’re still on the hook for the loan, minus two grand. And forget class action, because that’s capped at $500k or some small percentage of the value of the lender – which ever is less.
geg6
@Belafon (formerly anonevent):
I’d be happy to send James Harrison from Pittsburgh up to Detroit once a week (let’s say…Monday afternoons) to do the job.
jibeaux
I hope Warren can make himself useful taking out the recycling and making the coffee at the Detroit HUD office for a while.
drkrick
@geg6: If he keeps playing the way he did last week, he’ll be available for the job.
gene108
@Svensker:
65 from what I’ve read.
Short Bus Bully
This doesn’t fall in line with the Doctrine of Holy Land Texas.
does.not.compute.
Corey
I’m not sure if this is necessarily something to cheerlead. I mean, yes, I am glad that a 101-year-old woman doesn’t have to leave her home, I think the bankers involved should have thought twice before foreclosing like idiots, and I’m glad the government got involved.
But this kind of stuff is happening writ large all over the country, and highly-visible, post-hoc “fixes” of individual circumstances like these completely fail to recognize the structural problem.
Glad the government got involved to put a 101-year-old woman back in her home? Yes. Unhappy that it comes to extraordinary action by HUD to do so? That, too.
artem1s
@e:
I want to know where her long form birth certificate is. How do you know she is really 101? Or even a real ‘Murican?
punkdavid
Someone ought to troll-post this at Red State and get some reactions.
joes527
@Corey: jinx
Earl Butz
Warren Hollis did not “screw it up good”. He deliberately defrauded his mother, thinking she was going to be dead before anyone found out. Problem is, the bitch wouldn’t die on schedule and now Warren looks bad.
Kudos to HUD for doing the right thing, the human thing, the decent thing. A big fuck you to the Detroit police, who should have promptly thrown this amoral scumbag straight into the darkest jail cell they have.
When he finally gets out, he can go to work for the GOP. He’ll fit right in.
PurpleGirl
The foreclosure was done by HUD because the son didn’t pay the taxes. When you take a reverse mortgage, while you may not have a mortgage payment, you agree to keep up-to-date with your taxes and maintenance on the house. If you fall behind on the taxes… you can lose the house.
JC
Good news!
ruemara
I’m glad for her, but I too would like to see some real investigation into what her son was doing with the money. This is elder abuse.
campionrules
The government took pity because they are the ones that did the foreclosing. Reverse mortgages are handled by HUD. She didn’t pay her taxes. They kicked her out. They re-instated her because it’s been a fucking PR nightmare.
This is hardly something to cheer about. Though I’m glad she got her house back.
The Dangerman
Tough shit; let her live on the sidewalk.
/ron paul and the plain white tea-shits
daveNYC
@j low: It’s never a bad time to link to a Tanta Ubernerd post.
Scott P.
I think he’s older than she is!
/Mandelbaum
bourbaki
So what are peoples thoughts on cramdown?
Though I guess that horse left the barn a while ago.
snaveca
BTW, it wasn’t a reverse mortgage, it was a standard mortgage. Here’s the link to a follow-up story that provided corrected information, including that the son was notified in advance of the eviction and apparently did nothing to inform his mother or make any other arrangements. I still think HUD did the right thing…
http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/region/detroit/hud-will-give-home-back-to-evicted-101-year-old-detroit-woman-texana-hollis
j low
@daveNYC: The link is broken, but I found the article anyway. A very good description of how a reverse mortgage works. Unfortunately I think it is very rare that the recipient of the reverse mortgage understands all of this even with the “extensive counseling”. I do know from experience (therefore anecdotally and possibly without statistical significance) that often these borrowers have no idea what they are getting into and that the part about being able to foreclose on a reverse mortgage for not meeting “minimal maintenance standards” is VERY important.
kc
@Dave:
WOLF BLITZER: “Senator Paul, what do you think should happen to a 101-year old woman who can’t afford to keep her house? Should we just let the sheriff put her out on the street to die?”
AUDIENCE: “YEEEAAAH!” “KILL HER!!!!” “DIE, OLD LADY, DIE!”
RON PAUL: “This is really a question about freedom and personal choices. She should be free to choose not pay . . .”
BLITZER: “So we should just let her die in the streets??”
AUDIENCE: “HELL YEAH! YEAAAHH! DIE! DIE! DIE!”
RON PAUL: “It’s all about freedom.”
Caz
Why not just make it illegal to foreclose against anyone 65 or older?
Is it not age discrimination when they allow 40 year olds to be kicked out but not an elderly person?
Everyone should be treated the same. Should there be safety nets? Yes, and there already are.
daveNYC
An extra http// in the link. Gastritis broke my copy/paste.
Yeah, the big problem for them is that the target customer is usually not the type to have a solid grip lightly funky financial transactions.
Quaker in a Basement
@The Other Chuck: Well, never I suppose, except for the times when they are denied the society of decent folk.
MKSinSA
@kc: Amen to that! His “joy” should be incredibly short-lived.
Angela
Good for HUD. I have more anger at the son than the evicting agency. The follow up story says they were talking with him for a week before the eviction letting him know he needed a plan b for his mom. Double betrayal for Mrs. Hollis.
Catpause
Great Caesar’s ghost! Can’t I go one day without Detroit being the punchline of humanity’s despair! This was a once great city. All that keeps it from recovering is our lack of trying and people doing stupid, stupid things ( I’m looking at you, Kwame.)
BTW, who gives a ninety year old a second mortgage? Seriously!
The Spy Who Loved Me
Can I please point out that no bank put this poor old lady on the street. HUD did. Yes, a department of the federal government kicked this old woman to the curb because her deadbeat/thieving ass son took her money and ignored years of tax and lien notices.
I’m glad this woman will be able to return to her home, but there is only on bad guy here, and it’s her piece of crap son. And should she be still alive next year, what happens if once again the property taxes aren’t paid?
Percysowner
@The Spy Who Loved Me: No, HUD did not kick her out. The taxing entity (county, city or state) kicked her out for not paying her taxes. HUD PAID the taxes and now they own the house so they will continue to pay the taxes. I realize you want to your point across, that the government is BAD but people on this blog can read, so it is silly to misrepresent the facts. Either that, or you did not bother to read the article yourself. Either way, not the best move.
opie jeanne
@Svensker: That’s what I’m thinking, although he might be as young as 60. Women have had children that late in life.
He lived in a house across the street, if I recall from the first article I read. Why in deity of your choice’s name didn’t he just get his own reverse mortgage? Why give a chunk of it to his church? I think there’s still a bit more to the story than has been reported.
opie jeanne
@Catpause: My dad bought a house at age 89. It’s a 30 year mortgage. He is determined to live to 115 and he’ll probably make it the way he’s going now. He’s 93 and healthy, just slowing down a bit.
The Spy Who Loved Me
@Percysowner:
You might want to check your reading comprehension. The excerpt specifically says that HUD foreclosed. Just in case you have trouble finding where that information is given, it’s the first sentence in the third paragraph.
Damned at Random
Would this have even made the news if she was 98? I have no doubt that elderly people are put out of their homes all the time for reasons thay don’t even understand.
When I was young, an elderly woman was found frozen to death in her house. She had stopped paying her gas bill and, when the gas company shut her off, her pipes broke and she died of exposure- IIRC, she was frozen to the floor. The gas company had done due diligance- they sent someone to the house before terminating service, but she didn’t answer the door and the figured the property was abandooned.
I don’t know how to prevent the many little tragedies that happen every day. I guess just be aware of the problems in your neighborhood and look out for those lonely people- even if it labels you are a meddler and busybody.
WHich reminds me, I should volunteer for meals on wheels