'Evening News': Renter Still Foreclosure Victim Despite $2,500 Payout

March 28th, 2008 3:59 PM

Surprise - another foreclosure hardship story on the national evening news.

This time it was the March 27 "CBS Evening News." CBS correspondent Ben Tracy had no difficulty finding one family affected, it's just that they were paid well to be affected. He showcased a family in Oakland, Calif., that had to move due to a foreclosure.

"What they did not know is that the owner of the home they've been renting near Oakland, California, wasn't paying her mortgage, and the bank foreclosed on the property at the worst possible time," CBS correspondent Ben Tracy said.

According to the CBS report, their original agreement was 30 days, but they accepted an option to expedite the process and shave 16 days off the agreement for the compensation.

"And so brokers representing banks often offer what's called ‘cash for keys,' a payoff to get a renter out quickly," Tracy said.

"The offer was $2,500 to leave," Adriana Diharce, one of the members of the family renting, said.

For moving 16 days early, the Diharce family received a little over $156 for each day they forfeited in their old rental home.