King's Dream Deferred, One More Victim of the Subprime Mortgage Crisis

And before any of you fix your lips to place all the blame on the homeowners, just remember that this loss of wealth comes largely as a result of lenders and others in the mortgage industry who took advantage of people trying to achieve the American dream of homeownership.

I've seen some loan documents with crazy-high prepayment penalties that people didn't even realize they had. I've interviewed and counseled hardworking folks who -- yes, foolishly -- were so focused on getting a home that they believed whatever they were told, including that the value of their home would continue to rise, making it easy for them to refinance out of the exotic mortgages with tricky teaser rates.

"On the surface, subprime loan products can sound relatively simple and attractive, and some people have benefited from their use," the report said. "Yet, as more details of the industry's activities began to surface, the predatory practices of many subprime loan brokers came to the forefront. Unless inexperienced borrowers asked complex questions about loan terms covered only in the fine print, they received loans that they had little to no chance of repaying."

UFE is right in concluding that one of the biggest challenges facing our nation is not the lack of wealth but the "destructive distribution of wealth."

When King delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963, he said this about the economic state of blacks: "The Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity."

King had a dream that the great economic divide in this country would shrink significantly. But sadly for many, that dream is still being deferred -- made worse most recently by the subprime crisis.

¿ On the air: Michelle Singletary discusses personal finance Tuesdays on NPR's "Day to Day" program and online athttp://www.npr.org.

¿ By mail: Readers can write to her at The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071.

¿ By e-mail:singletarym@washpost.com.

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