MERS’ impact on clear property titles

[Photo by Kay B. Day]You might think the mortgage industry couldn’t get any murkier. Fact is MERS—Mortgage Electronic Registry Systems Inc.—is drawing attention for the sometimes (maybe even often) murky progression of property titles. Most national media haven’t even given this company a nod, but it appears to be a key actor in the record number of foreclosures the U.S. is seeing.

This isn’t a law and order issue. It’s not dramatic. Yet it is highly significant to the US economy and to anyone who purchases a home. Exactly how clear is your title?

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UN Rapporteur visits US to investigate housing crisis as her home state explodes with crime

by Kay B. Day

UN Special Rapporteur Raquel Rolnik is investigating the housing crisis in the U.S. Rolnik's home state where she directed urban planning is crime-ridden.United Nations Special Rapporteur on adequate housing Raquel Rolnik is visiting American cities like New York and New Orleans, and the international consultant for urban and housing policy will then file a report with the Geneva-based UN human Rights Council. A UN statement said, “The mortgage crisis that is at the head of the current financial turmoil reflects ‘fundamental’ flaws in the way countries approach housing, and highlights the danger in thinking that markets alone will ensure adequate housing for all.” Meanwhile Rolnik’s home state explodes with crime.

Rolnik said, “The belief that markets will provide adequate housing for all has failed. The current crisis is a stark reminder of this reality…A home is not a commodity—four walls and a roof. It is a place to live in security, peace and dignity, and a right for every human being.” Rolnik said the mortgage crisis will result in “a sharp increase in the numbers of the homeless.” She did not differentiate between the voluntary and involuntary homeless.

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