©2010 Boston.com

Byline: Cheryl Costa

The real estate market is still in a very serious slump and according to a recent study, more than one in four homeowners is "underwater", meaning they owe more on their mortgage than their home is worth. Many people in this situation have lost their jobs and are struggling to make their mortgage payments. For some, the circumstances get so bad that they have no choice but to walk away from their mortgage.

For others, however, the decision to walk away from a house and a mortgage is more strategic. These homeowners are generally employed and fully capable of making their mortgage payments, but they choose not to because they figure it will take forever for their home's value to surpass the amount they owe on the mortgage.

Putting aside the considerable moral issues associated with such a choice, there are now more potent penalties for those choosing this course of action. In late June, Fannie Mae announced that it would prohibit borrowers from getting a new loan for seven years if they defaulted on a loan that they could have afforded. Previously, such borrowers were prohibited from getting new loans for five years. Fannie Mae also said they would become more aggressive about going after the remaining assets of these strategic defaulters.

So, how does the agency decide if you were able to pay the mortgage or not? The default assumption will be that the borrower voluntarily walked away unless the borrower can document the "extenuating circumstances" that caused them to default or they can prove that they tried to work out an alternate arrangement with their lender but were unsuccessful. If the borrower can prove either one of these circumstances, they will face a penalty period of just three years.