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Houses of Blues

Foreclosures take heavy toll on hearts and minds of Mercedians who lose their homes

Two weeks ago, a retired telephone company worker named Ethelda Lopez watched as her dream retirement home was auctioned off on the lawn outside a county courthouse in downtown Merced.

From courthouse steps, woman sees dream dissolve

Ethelda Lopez, her husband, teenage daughter and two dogs still live in their four-bedroom, three-bath brown ranch home in Atwater's countryside -- but much has changed.

Clinging to hope and home

Elected and appointed officials said the psychological trauma spawned by home foreclosures in Merced County poses a serious challenge, but that recent cuts to state mental health funding makes treatment hard to get.

Falling Down: Woman, 66, faces fears day and night as foreclosure looms

It became clear when the fall from her bed left a gaping hole in her mouth: the stress from imminent foreclosure had taken over her thoughts -- day and night.

Renters, beware of trapdoor

For the Matthews family, it's already a tight fit. But it promises to get tighter -- and more stressful. Sam Matthews, 28, his wife, three children, brother and mother share a five-bedroom, two-story home they've rented in a pleasant, new North Merced development.

Out of job, out of home?

"I knew just looking around my neighborhood that a lot of people would be losing their homes. I never thought I'd be one of them."
Then, the unimaginable happened: she lost her job.

U.S. senators say they're focused on foreclosures

In Washington, the state's two U.S. senators issued statements in response to the Sun-Star series.

Few are getting loan modifications

WASHINGTON -- Conceding that its initial mortgage relief program has been less than successful, the Treasury Department on Thursday announced new rules to simplify and speed the decision-making process for struggling borrowers trying to modify the terms of their distressed mortgages.

Champagne to crowbars: Realtor Krotik shifts from selling dreams to tending empty homes

Wedding dresses, baby pictures, drapes, puppies and live pigs. A short list of some of the items Atwater Realtor Andy Krotik has found in the lifeless rooms of foreclosed homes.

About this series:

This project is the result of a partnership between the Merced Sun-Star and the California HealthCare Foundation Center for Health Reporting. The center is an independent organization devoted to reporting about health care issues that concern Californians. It is headquartered at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and funded by the nonprofit, nonpartisan California HealthCare Foundation.

Replay live chat
Replay the live chat about the foreclosure crisis and its health effects with local experts on mental health.

Multimedia

Problems can start small and pile on quickly

Therapist Elizabeth Morrison, clinical director of behavioral health at Golden Valley Health Centers, talks about the impacts of the foreclosure crisis on mental health, alerts us to the signs of stress and depression, and ponders how Merced�s foreclosure epidemic affects the community.