Rural Iowa Faces Home Forclosure Squeeze

Rural homeowners in Iowa pay higher interest rates and have a greater number of adjustable-rate mortgages, according to a report in the Des Moines Register. As a result, "rural Iowa is poised to be hit much harder by the nation's foreclosure crisis, as a greater portion of borrowers in small communities struggle to make ends meet," according to reporter Paula Lavigne. Most interesting in this good story is the Register's finding that rural homeowners pay higher interest rates than urban homeowners. Lavigne reports that 27 percent of rural loans issued from 2004 to 2006 had high interest rates compared to 19 percent of urban loans. And when they refinanced, more rural borrowers ended up with high-interest loans than did urban borrowers.Lavigne reported that since loans tend to be smaller in rural areas, lenders raise interest rates to increase their profits.