The Monroe News reports from Michigan. "Foreclosures in Monroe County soared 64 percent during 2006. The number of sheriff's deeds climbed to 498, up from 303 during 2005, according to the Monroe County Register of Deeds office. It means about one in every 94 owner-occupied homes in Monroe County went into foreclosure during 2006."

"Spending beyond their means is oftentimes part of the equation, meaning when times were good people spent every penny they had and there's not much savings,' said Thomas G. Myers, chief lending manager at Monroe Bank & Trust. He said the stereotypical belief that overspending causes foreclosures isn't always the main reason."

"'There's no doubt there are some people who have recklessly gone and spent above their means, but there are a lot of people who haven't done anything wrong and it has turned around and slapped them in the face,' said Arlene Walsh, mortgage office with LaSalle Bank's Home Lending Center in Monroe."

"If there's a silver lining behind the numbers, it's in the pockets of the people who are getting deals on foreclosed homes. 'That part of the story is pretty good because usually if it's owned by a bank or some type of lending institution, they are asking a rock bottom price to move the house,' Ms. Walsh said. 'You're going to get fairly good deals on any home that's in foreclosure, just due to the sheer number of them now.'"

"To add some perspective, about 1,260 homes sold in Monroe County last year, just over twice the number foreclosed."

"Ms. Walsh also said in response to the foreclosure rate, some lenders are tightening up loan policies, looking at credit scores and income-to-debt ratios much more closely. 'If people want a competitive rate, they have to be following guidelines that are much stricter than they were five years ago,' she said."

The Indianapolis Star. "In a sense, though a very qualified sense, Central Indiana has been a victim of its own success when it comes to home mortgage foreclosures. Historically a leader both in the rate of homeownership and the frequency of reliance upon federally insured loans for buyers of modest income, the region also finds itself among the front-runners on the downside."

"Metropolitan Indianapolis dropped from first place to third place nationally in foreclosure rates last year but had nothing to celebrate. Lenders took back 48,000 homes, up nearly 36 percent over 2005."

"Who's at fault? Who isn't? Illegal loan scams that have made the headlines in recent months and led to multiple arrests certainly have cut a swath of blight as phantom financing led to abandonment and foreclosure. However, far greater loss results from widespread activity that defies no law but too often defies good sense."

"Joel Epstein, president of the Greater Indianapolis Mortgage Bankers Association, cites a nationwide push 'to create a culture of homeownership' which has led to excess as well as success. 'Did we as a lending industry and a real estate industry, in trying to get people into houses, maybe go too far in some cases? I would say yes. Were some people given the wrong kinds of loans? Yes. Were some people not ready to be in homes? Yes. Was the economy at fault? Yes.'"

The Journal Sentinel from Wisconsin. "Brenda Boyce is frustrated. Her tax bill assumes her house is worth thousands of dollars more than anybody seems willing to pay."

"'Our townhouse in Wauwatosa, on the market for eight months, was reassessed at $391,000 last summer,' Boyce said. 'Our asking price, after being lowered twice, is now $349,900 and still we have not received any legitimate offers. Assessments are completely out of whack with values.'"

"Boom conditions ended abruptly last year, sapping value from many properties. Yet the latest crop of tax bills is based on assessed value as of Jan. 1, 2006 - which may have been the finale of the 2000-'05 housing price run-up."

"Homeowners trying to sell are hard-hit when assessments collide with harsh market realities. 'After trending up, trending up, for five years straight, suddenly we reached the top and now we're cresting down a little,' said Steve Stiloski, president of the Appraisal Institute's Wisconsin chapter."

"Some local assessors, especially those who rely on mass valuations of residential properties, 'may be overshooting' housing values, Stiloski said."

"House values rose an average of 10% in 2005, the boom's peak, according to the state Department of Revenue. It's likely, said Dale Knapp, research director of Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, that the downturn left some overvalued housing in its wake."

"Milwaukeean Jim Gehl puts himself in the unhappy camp of those whose homes wound up overvalued and are paying more than their fair share this year. He and his wife, Kim, are selling their 2-year-old east side condo, asking price $249,900, because of a job transfer."

"Despite no offers in six months, Gehl said, 'I'm in no mood to sell for a lower value than I paid, especially after paying taxes from a city that says my assessment is $12,000 higher than what I purchased it for. The city needs to look at the real value of properties.'"