There were more than 2.2 million foreclosure filings on nearly 1.3 million properties reported In USA during 2007. It goes without saying that it is a sad a stressful moment in ones life to think that your family home could berepossessed. The first thing to do is to sit down and be real about exactly where you are financially. Contact your creditors as soon as you get a problem to find out whether last minute patch up effort can be done. They will often deal very reasonably with you if you talk to them sooner rather than later There are possibilities and chances to save the boat. There may be a plan of further loan or clearance of debts under a new plan.

Sadly at the end of the day the borrower may have no other option as the lender wants his money back. It's all very well to say that one should stay positive to lessen the strain – that's easier said than done. And I understand its hard to look at the long term when the wolves are knocking at the door but some are taking everything inside the house with them including copper pipes, plumbing, wiring, appliances, sinks, everything. An empty shell is what the lender gets to foreclose on.

However at the other end of this reckless behavior are homeowners literally burning down their homes. Now that's what I call extreme.

As repossessions become more widespread folk start worrying about their homes losing value. However Insurance companies start worrying about people seeing arson as a 'hot' way out of meeting their financial commitments. I can only imagine that their thought behind this is to see if the insurance company will pay out. We are reading more and more stories in the media of stressed homeowners who intentionally leave a pot with oil on the stove or deliberately provoke an electrical fire. Many assume that their intent will be impossible to prove. But arson investigators are becoming increasingly focused and sophisticated. For example in the United States The Insurance Services Organization manages a database used to compile and cross-reference information about all insurance claims. Investigators use it to spot repeat claimants and those who collect multiple payments by insuring the same property with several different companies.

So the bottom line is would be arsonists should consider the jail time they face should their case be successfully investigated, not to mention the potential harm to neighbours homes or health should their fires get out of control.