 | | Amber Frey is in foreclosure on her northern California home. | |
 | | Frey took out an adjustable mortgage on her home, and the monthly payments have become too high for her to pay. | |
 | | Frey says she knows she is not alone in the foreclosure crisis. | |
|
|
"I know I don't walk in this alone," says a stoic Amber Frey, who is trying to find her way through yet another personal crisis. Like millions of Americans, she's facing foreclosure.
"The experience that you had five years ago with that trial, do you think that being in the public eye has made you stronger, and made you more able to deal with this situation?" asks INSIDE EDITION's Jim Moret.
"Yeah, I look at myself as a survivor," says Frey.
In 2002, Frey found herself at the heart of the Laci Peterson murder case. She was Scott Peterson's girlfriend and the prosecution's star witness at his double murder trial, where he was convicted of killing his pregnant wife and their unborn son.
Three years ago, as she tried to put the Peterson nightmare behind her, the spa owner bought a two-story house in northern California for $539,000. But she took out an adjustable rate mortgage, and this year her payments soared to $1,600 a month. Now Frey is more than $20,000 behind on those payments.
"It came down to either I keep my business or I keep my home. My choice was to keep my business because that is what's ultimately going to put food on my table," says Frey.
"Do you get upset when people say, 'Well how could this happen to you, you had a book and you had all of these appearances, how could you be in trouble?' " asks Jim Moret.
"I have responsibilities, I have my children, and I don't have financial help for my children," explains Frey.
On Wednesday, Frey's home was put up for auction at the county courthouse, but not a single buyer showed up. The asking price was $306,000, over $200,000 less than Frey bought it for three years ago. Now the mother of two awaits the bank's next move.
"I know there are millions of other people in the same shoes," says Frey.
|