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Homebuying for teachers
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The premise of the subprime is that the Federal Government through the Community Reinvestment Act pressured banks into making loans that people could not afford. They bought houses that were over their head. Once reality set in foreclosures went through the roof.
In this case a $15,000 loan is enough of a downpayment to purchase a $500,000 home! A $500,000 home has a monthly payment of over $3,500 on average.
Isn't it amazing what is going on here? We have a person who just manages to get elected and already forgetting the massive lessons of 2008. Like a dog to its vomit the Utah Legislature is playing games...again!
Please, give this guy a handful of candy for effort then kill his bill. Then give him either a basic course on economics or at least 30 minutes reading through the Deseret News archives on the subject of "Subprime meltdown." He might find it interesting.
Would you do this at your job?
When the math core was being looked at, it was like pulling teach to get the standards raised due to teacher math educator opposition.
I heard excuses like, the kids are different today than yesteryear, they can't handle a return to higher standards. I think the opposition was an effort to protect teachers who were not able to teach the higher standards.
Higher pay yes, but also higher standards to go along with the higher pay.
This is real world 101 and that is what other people are forced to do in this economic times and teachers shouldn't be given special treatment.
How does this help?
Just give them a $15,000 bonus for staying at the same school for 10 years and you will see a big increase in teacher retention.
Before all the whiners get here and start claiming "what about me?", they are welcome to become teachers whenever they want.
It is the law of supply and demand at work.
Why not just give them a bonus for every 5 years worked that they can spend anyway they want to? Very unfair to other city workers. Do firefighter's get extra money to buy a house?
A $500,000 house should have a $100,000 down. $2500 payment + insurance and taxes. If you can't save tens of thousands to put money down on a home you can't afford in excess of $2,500 a month +.
As it sits most of the monies go to the massive, overabundance of school administrators. Make cuts there...have them earn their huge salaries by actually giving more responsiblity to each.
Education in Utah is top heavy; when administrative pay is compared with that of teachers you will find that most of them make five times more than starting teachers (check any district salary schedule). There just is not that large of a gap in other states and it needs to be monitored more closely as well as their treatment of teachers and the lack of support.
People are no longer going into education for these reasons. Yes, pay is one component but it goes way beyond that.
There are so many other solutions to the problem. Don't waste time in the legislature.
Will the handout be available to police, firemen or librarians? How about the average Joe?
Give me a break. Your daughter, after 10 years of teaching will be making more than most Utahns. My friends who graduated in 1998 now make salaries in the $50,000 a year range at Utah school districts. Check Utah's right to know on the web to look up what teachers make. What administrators make will make you sick. Check out the nepotism. Nevada teachers are facing a 6% pay cut! The legislature is asking for a 15% across the board cut for all state programs. How dare they bring up this loan program now? Why not a loan for firemen, police and all state workers. I'm sick of teachers complaining! Our economy is in the toilet. Try living on a private sector salary with constant health insurance hikes and threats of layoff... I have a degree and only get 2 weeks vacation a year also!
No firefighters do not get house bonus but they get overtime!!
What district(s) are your friends working in?!!! No district on the Wasatch Front pays $50,000 for a bachelor's degree teacher until year 12.
Teachers are not immune from the rising health care costs, most pay for their insurance now.
Teachers did not ask for this program. Frankly, we are shocked at how a program like this can be suggested when we were told we would need to cut back 8%-15% for the next school year.
Teachers are salaried and they get the summer off. Yet consider summer a forced layoff. Balance your salary over twelve months instead of nine.
Just checked the Granite Teacher Pay Schedule for 2008-2009, and the only way you can make $50K after 10 years ($49,966) is to have a Masters Degree plus 20 semester hours. Even with a PhD a 10-year teacher only makes $52,837. That additional education comes at a cost to families. Those teachers spend a lot of evenings at night school and summers at summer school to get an advanced degree or the additional endorsements most districts require to stay employed. That doesn't leave much free time for the 2nd job some here are advocating as a solution to the problem of under-paid teachers.
This is a program that will help to "Catch" teachers in Utah. Currently, new teachers are leaving in droves for other states. Offering an incentive to keep them here for 10 years makes it nearly impossible to leave. Teachers being paid at the 10 year level will not want to leave and start over from scratch (this is a common practice even in Utah... you make them start over so they won't ever leave).
At the twenty year mark teachers red line. In other words they do not get a raise for their last ten years of service...think about that for awhile.
Teachers are people and just as frustrated as anyone else. I hear you complaining about your education/job or lack there of. But it's ok for you to complain now isn't it.
Since your job isn't working out and you have a degree come teach... Utah needs them.
I'd give you one month and then the frustration would set in and well there you go again!! But thats ok POOR BABY!!
So, not only will this only help teachers, it will only help teachers who are house shopping. What about all the other teachers who have made sacrifices to get their own home already? No help there. What about all the teachers who still have no hope of owning a home? Still nothing.
Is this a plan to help teachers or your realtor buddies?
I did a quick search, and a teacher could buy a house, on a teacher's salary. The problem is that they can't buy the same house that other people can buy. There are currently about 100 houses for sale in Davis County that cost between $100,000 and $150,000. That price range is affordable at $32,000/year.
If those houses are not acceptable to the teachers, then maybe they should have considered an alternate career for being the primary provider for a family.
This legislator would be far better off trying to simply improve the wages of the teachers as a whole, not cherry pick with flawed methods.
Again, subprime. Even if a teacher used the $15k to get into a home valued at $200,000 and they didn't have the money for it this legislator is creating a new problem. Not solving one.
A for effort. F for execution.
Another person claiming to have such a high level of education and great job running off at the mouth!!
Your so highly educated come and teach...OOPS can't do it with a degree from USP(University of Self Pity). Get it right!!
BTW: Teachers, firefighters, and police officers are already eligible to participate in a housing program that allows them to purchase a HUD home at 50% off the sale price, with the requirement that they fix up the home and stay there at least five years. The homes and locations are not great, but it is an opportunity to own a home at a huge discount -- better than a $15,000 loan.
Last I looked it was the ghetto of Ogden or SLC.
Sorry but even a teacher's family more valuable than a house payment.
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