A Modest Proposal — Main Street bailed out Wall Street, now Wall Street should bail out Main Street

Nearly 12 million American renters were expected to owe an average of almost $6,000 in late rent and utility payments per household as of January. Homeowners and small landlords with one or two properties face cascading late fees and foreclosure when their tenants are unable to pay rent.

Eviction moratoriums and payment extensions never were and never will be sufficient. We face an eviction and foreclosure pandemic. To avert that, President Biden must act NOW.

DURING THE GREAT RECESSION, AMERICAN TAXPAYERS BAILED OUT WALL ST. BANKERS

During the 2008–2010 Great Recession, the federal government and the Federal Reserve bailed out the banks and other financial institutions to the tune of roughly $3.3 trillion in cash and more than $9 trillion in short-term loans and other financial arrangements, while tossing home owners and other small borrowers to the wolves (often those same Wall St. carnivores).

IT’S TIME FOR FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS TO RECIPROCATE AND BAIL OUT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

We should demand that all home and small business mortgages now in arrears because their tenants are unable to pay rent should be protected against foreclosure, just as all tenants should be protected against eviction.

Mortgage payments by small landlords and homeowners should be frozen until such time as their tenants are once again able to pay rent. Financial institutions that hold the loans should be barred from foreclosing, adding unpaid interest to the back end of mortgages, or imposing late fees or other penalties.

Taxpayers bailed out the banks. Now the banks must be required to bail out these small property owners. Any small bank that would face financial jeopardy as a result should be provided aid by the Federal Reserve.

We can debate the particulars about the size of mortgages to be protected and other details, but this principle of Wall St. bailing out Main St. would protect small landlords and tenants, and force Wall St. banks and other lenders to act like responsible corporate citizens.

Michael Eisenscher, Publisher, SolidarityINFOService

michael@solidarityINFOService.org @SolidarityINFOS