Graham Williams is the CEO of Mortgage Resolution Partners, a firm that works with communities to keep people in their homes after they’ve been foreclosed on. Before participating in a panel on rebuilding neighborhoods after mass foreclosures, he talked about the first house he bought—and the question he wishes people asked before buying houses of their own—in the Zócalo green room.
Do you see the glass as half full or half empty?
I think we’re about halfway through the foreclosure crisis. There’ve been just over 4 million foreclosures in the United States since the market collapsed in 2007. Most folks are forecasting between 4 and 8 million additional foreclosures. So I guess I’m not particularly optimistic when it comes to foreclosures. The housing market may be improving; in fact, it is improving in several places. But I’m an entrepreneur—so I’m an optimist always.
When did you buy your first piece of property?
Nineteen-eighty. It was a single-family home in Pasadena, California that I paid $92,000 for.
What do you wake up to?
My wife, a cup of coffee, and The New York Times.
Who was your childhood hero?
My father.
What question do you wish more people asked before buying a home?
Can I really afford this?
What salad dressing best describes you?
[Laughs.] I thought you were going to ask me about a Simpsons character. I was going to say Lisa. I guess ranch; I’m not sure why.
How do you procrastinate?
Very well. Procrastination by definition is lack of action, so I don’t suppose I really do anything! I put off those things I’m not attracted to doing.
When did you last get a traffic ticket?
I got a speeding ticket on the way to Oakland Airport. I was doing 30 in a 15 zone around the airport.
Where would we find you at 10 a.m. on a typical Saturday?
Hiking near my home in Marin, California with my wife.
What surprises you most about your life right now?
I was a banker for 25 years, and now I’m a reformed banker, and that’s a surprise to me.