Three Charlotte families struggle to save their homes CharlotteObserver.com

31.01.10

It's down to the wire as deadline nears

Last Wednesday, Reggie Belk waited anxiously for a ruling on whether he'd get more time to save his Charlotte home of decades from foreclosure.

He would learn his fate on the third floor of the Mecklenburg County Courthouse, in hearing Room C.

"C for chance," he said.

Belk, 58, and his sister Nancy, 53, refinanced their east Charlotte home in 2005. Those were boom times, when ads encouraged people to tap the ever-rising value of their homes. He recalls a paralegal came to the house with closing documents, telling them not to bother reading, just sign.

She's mentally disabled. He was a salesman who had taken a job with Charlotte schools. They took on payments of nearly $1,200, including taxes and insurance, and an interest rate close to 10 percent. They got about $11,000 from refinancing. He bought a car, World War II memorabilia, clothes and vacations for his two teen sons.

Soon, his health deteriorated, with heart and other problems. Like his sister, he ended up on disability. Between them, their income totals less than $2,400, according to Social Security statements. Their house payment took more than half.

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