Details of President Barack Obama’s $75 billion plan to help up to 9 million families restructure or refinance their mortgages to avoid losing their homes to foreclosure. The plan, to be announced Wednesday, would:
— Remove restrictions on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that prohibit the institutions, both taken over by the government last year, from refinancing mortgages they own or have guaranteed when more is owed on a home than it is worth. The White House says this could reduce monthly payments for up to 5 million homeowners.
— Create incentives for lenders to modify subprime loans at risk of default or foreclosure. For lenders that agree to reduce rates to levels borrowers can afford, the government will make up part of the difference between the old monthly payment and the new payment. Participating lenders also will be required to cut payments to no more than 31 percent of a borrower’s income. Up to 4 million homeowners could benefit.
— Keep mortgage rates low for millions of middle-class families seeking new mortgages. Using money already approved by Congress for this purpose, the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve will continue to buy Fannie and Freddie mortgage-backed securities to maintain stability and liquidity in the marketplace. The department, through its existing authority, will provide up to $200 billion in capital for this purpose.
— Pursue reforms to help families avoid foreclosure. The administration will continue to support changing bankruptcy rules so judges can reduce mortgages on primary homes to their fair market value, as long as the borrower sticks to a court-ordered repayment plan. As part of the $787 billion stimulus package that Obama signed into law on Tuesday, the administration will award $2 billion in competitive grants to communities experimenting with innovative ways to prevent foreclosures.
How can they say $75B when 1 of the 4 points covers up to $200B?
Welcome to United Socialist States of Stupidity folks.
Why this won’t work:
– It has no provision for making houses affordable again – the true root of the problem
– It forces banks to lose money, w/ the Gov’t making up only a portion, leading to higher lending rates
– It now encourages people to lie about how little they earn
– It assumes people actually want to stay in a home they can’t afford
– Judges are now charged with determining FMV on a home. Reverse appraisal fraud here we come.
Ironically, the short-sighted idiocy of this bill will be its downfall, and will eventually lead to a proper housing correction.
Of course had they not done anything at all and let prices correct we’d get there even faster.