"Miss M" at M is for Money has a sense of humor about her predicament. She called her post "If my house is underwater, where is my ocean view?"

This post will help people who live where housing prices are reasonable and stable -- yes, these places exist -- to understand how others could owe more on their homes than they're worth. For those of you who have firsthand experience with this problem, maybe you won't feel so all alone.

Miss M's story takes place in Los Angeles. Rents were high in 2004, and she and "Mr. M" needed more room, so they started looking to buy a house. ("It's the best investment you'll ever make," her mother said at the time. "We've made money on every house we've owned.")

Long story short (and do read the long story), they bought a "cottage" for $345,000 in May of 2005. Property values kept rising. A nearby two-bedroom sold for $490,000.

Not so these days: A house similar to hers went on the market more than eight months ago. The $370,000 asking price is now $205,000.

She's not feeling sorry for herself. "No, I'm not here to ask for a handout, a bailout or any other way out," she said. She can afford the payments and has no plans to walk away. She just wants to share her story.

She wrote, "I comfort myself by recognizing that I am in better shape than a lot of my neighbors, like the guy who paid $490k."