Those who, in the end, signed the contract and took out a loan they couldn't afford. So, would go with uneducated buyers for $1,600, Alex.

The buyers. They are the ones who entered into the contract and agreed to make the payments.

Agreed, I at first was gunna say "All of the above" but really, everyone is just out to make money. It's the job of the buyer to make sure that you don't get screwed.

The buyers, hands down. No one forces them to sign the papers. If they are so greedy and naive that they'll sign for a house they can't afford because someone will let them then they sign their own sentence. If people weren't so eager to get the house before everyone else did they wouldn't have sold in just days for more than the asking price. I saw it coming. It couldn't last for long. The government shouldn't be bailing out the greedy with our money.

uneducated buyers = 80% greedy lenders = 20%

The manufactured "housing crisis" is strictly GOVERNMENT generated. The problem began festering more than a decade ago. Certainly, all of the players mentioned are not without some culpability, but government started it all: 1 - Sundry government agencies, with the blessings of Congress, mandate that housing opportunities be extended to formerly unqualified buyers. 2 - Mortgage banks lower underwriting qualifications to accommodate expanded market. They also developed more "creative" loan products at the demands of the market. This also expanded the market for refinancing, encouraging borrowers to strip equity from their homes to live beyond their means for a few more years. 3 - Mortgage originators market to formerly unqualified individuals, including refinances. Some new originators were often badly trained during the pressures of the re-fi rushes. 4 - Realtors extend marketing to low-income buyers and take advantage of their artificially-expanded "qualified" buyer base. 5 - Appraisers are pressured by borrowers and mortgage originators to overvalue properties. Many conservative appraisers were driven out of business. 6 - Borrowers demand more house at a given payment amount. Precious few borrowers are the least bit "uneducated". All were made aware of the terms of their loans two or more times prior to closing! There are few "victims" here. 7 - Developers and builders expand their efforts to satisfy the voracious demand of the new market. When the markets crashed thousands were driven into bankruptcy, and their houses flooded the market, adding increased downward pressure on home values in overbuilt markets. 8 - Local government takes advantage of rapidly inflating property values to dramatically improve revenues. State and local governments expand their budgets accordingly -- building empires and monuments to their excesses! Don't expect property tax rollbacks any time soon. Local governments are addicted to tax revenues. There is plenty of blame to go around, but government was the driving force and among the chief benefactors of the "housing bubble". Over the past several years, I have seen more mortgage fraud by borrowers than from any other source (e.g., altered W2s and bank statements, bogus leases, etc.). Yes, there were corrupt mortgage originators, appraisers, title companies, etc. Sure, some mortgage banks encouraged it (e.g., AmeriQuest) -- but most was driven by borrowers' greed. Everyone else was just along for the ride. Government, in its endless pursuit of the Utopian solution to please some while crippling others, has driven hundreds of mortgage banks into bankruptcy, turned Mortgage-Backed Securities into worthless "junk bonds", and enticed consumers into becoming criminals. Then, when the fecal matter strikes the impeller, government is the first to lay blame everywhere except where it belongs! We most certainly do not need to expand government's stranglehold on the real estate market, in view of its incompetent handling to date. Just say "NO!" to Socialized Real Estate! That's my perspective as a mortgage lender and real estate professional.

IN MY OPINION= THE SONS OF NIPPON FROM THEIR FATHERS REVENGE FROM THE CAUSE OF WW2. THEY FINANCED YAHOO.COM AND HELD MERGERS AND BOUGHT HEAVY ON BOTH SIDES THEN ALLOWED THE MERGERS TO GO THROUGH AND MADE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS. THEY DID THIS FOR 8 YEARS IN OUR MAJOR INDUSTRY. THEN 2008 SUMMER STARTED SELLING A CERTAIN AMOUNT TO DEPLEAT OUR ECONOMY, BUT ONLY STOCK ECONOMY. PEOPLE AND SMALL CITIES THAT DID'NT DABBLE IN STOCK WERE'NT AFFECTED ONLY MAJOR INDUSTRY. IT SEEMED BEFORE WW.2 THE PRESIDENT OF AMERICA STOPPED SELLING OIL TO JAPAN, SO WITH 8 MONTHS OF OIL LEFT THEY ATTACKED, BUT WERE DEFEATED, SO THE FATHERS HAD THEIR STOCK ECONOMY INDUSTRIAL REVENGE ON AMERICA. I HAVE TAKEN IT ON MYSELF TO ADVISING AMERICANS TO BUY SHARES THAT PAY DIVIDENDS FOR THE FOOD THAT WE BUY IN OUR GROCERY MARKETS, BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY FOR THOSE SHARES TO GO DOWN IS FOR US WHO BUY THEM AND EAT THOSE FOODS NOT BE ALIVE TO CONTINUE THE SLOW MOVEMENT UPWARD TO REBUILD OUR NATION. NOT INDUSTRY, BUT THE VERY SAME FOODS WE BUY AND EAT OURSELVES. I DONT THINK THE JAPANESE LIKE OUR FOOD ANYWAY.