We are saved!!

[elgordoboy]

Bush to outline aid to mortgage holders

By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer 55 minutes ago


Offering federal help for strapped mortgage holders, President Bush is proposing to aid hundreds of thousands of borrowers hard hit by the housing slump.
The president on Friday was to talk about several initiatives and reforms to help homeowners with risky mortgages keep their homes, a senior administration official said Thursday. Bush also was to discuss efforts to prevent these kinds of problems from arising in the future.
The official said Bush will direct Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson to work on an initiative to help troubled mortgage holders get services and products they need to keep them from defaulting on their loans. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the initiatives ahead of the presidential event.
Bush also planned to:
? Urge Congress to pass Federal Housing Administration overhaul legislation that would give the FHA more flexibility in assisting mortgage holders with subprime mortgages.
? Pledge to work with Congress to reform the tax code to help troubled borrowers rework their loans.
? Call for rigorously enforcing predatory lending laws and strengthening lending practices.
Foreclosure and late payments have spiked, especially for so-called subprime borrowers with blemished credit histories or low incomes. Higher interest rates and weak home values have made it impossible for some to pay or to keep up with their monthly mortgage payments. Some overstretched homeowners can't afford to refinance or even sell their home.
Mortgage foreclosures and late payments are expected to worsen. Some 2 million adjustable rate mortgages are to reset to higher rates this year and next. Steep penalties for prepaying mortgages have added to some homeowners' headaches.
The economy enjoyed a strong revival in the spring although growing troubles in housing and credit markets have darkened prospects considerably since then. The Commerce Department reported on Thursday that the gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 4 percent in the second quarter ? the strongest showing in more than a year.
But that growth could be the best showing for some time as the economy continues to be battered by the worst housing slump in 16 years and a widening credit crisis that has sent financial markets on a roller-coaster ride in recent weeks.


Disaster averted!! Happy Days are here again. Where do they hang the Mission Accomplished banner for this?

 

[spinDrAtl]

Bush to outline aid to mortgage holders

By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer 55 minutes ago


Offering federal help for strapped mortgage holders, President Bush is proposing to aid hundreds of thousands of borrowers hard hit by the housing slump.
The president on Friday was to talk about several initiatives and reforms to help homeowners with risky mortgages keep their homes, a senior administration official said Thursday. Bush also was to discuss efforts to prevent these kinds of problems from arising in the future.
The official said Bush will direct Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson to work on an initiative to help troubled mortgage holders get services and products they need to keep them from defaulting on their loans. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the initiatives ahead of the presidential event.
Bush also planned to:
? Urge Congress to pass Federal Housing Administration overhaul legislation that would give the FHA more flexibility in assisting mortgage holders with subprime mortgages.
? Pledge to work with Congress to reform the tax code to help troubled borrowers rework their loans.
? Call for rigorously enforcing predatory lending laws and strengthening lending practices.
Foreclosure and late payments have spiked, especially for so-called subprime borrowers with blemished credit histories or low incomes. Higher interest rates and weak home values have made it impossible for some to pay or to keep up with their monthly mortgage payments. Some overstretched homeowners can't afford to refinance or even sell their home.
Mortgage foreclosures and late payments are expected to worsen. Some 2 million adjustable rate mortgages are to reset to higher rates this year and next. Steep penalties for prepaying mortgages have added to some homeowners' headaches.
The economy enjoyed a strong revival in the spring although growing troubles in housing and credit markets have darkened prospects considerably since then. The Commerce Department reported on Thursday that the gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 4 percent in the second quarter ? the strongest showing in more than a year.
But that growth could be the best showing for some time as the economy continues to be battered by the worst housing slump in 16 years and a widening credit crisis that has sent financial markets on a roller-coaster ride in recent weeks.


Disaster averted!! Happy Days are here again. Where do they hang the Mission Accomplished banner for this?

I would be against an aid program unless someone was defrauded, etc. This may have been said before but if the bureaucrats insist on going through with this, any aid program should include:

1) Only primary residences;
2) Anyone who used their home like an ATM to buy or pay off a car, go on vacation, pay credit cards charged up with plasma tv's, etc. should be disqualified.
3) Anyone who stated income higher than they actually made in order to qualify for more home/more cash out should be disqualified.

I'm sure there are more.

 

[GoodWitch58]

I wouldn't put too much faith in this "help"...sorta like Bush's statement from Jackson Sq.....re: NO and the Gulf Coast "help"

 

[SHELLY]

Disaster averted!! Happy Days are here again. Where do they hang the Mission Accomplished banner for this?

They can start by hanging the banner around the necks of the predatory lenders--Bush said he was going to go after them too Yeah, right....like that's going to happen.:roll:

I think the current flock of 'homeowers' need to line up behind the folks still living in FEMA trailers.


.

 

[Capricious]

I am against any sort of bail-out for any of the parties involved.

I see no reason for those "home owners" who were, quite frankly, dumb enough to borrow more money than they could pay back be
treated differently than those of us who handled our finances conservatively.

And I certainly have no pity for those speculators who are responsible for
driving up the cost of housing.

I suppose an argument can be made that allowing "home owners" to stay in
"their" houses will help stabilize house prices and benefit us all,
but at what cost to the taxpayer.

Also, I am concerned about the possibilities of these CDO's reaking havic in the money market accounts and the stable value fund that I have some investments in.

But in the end, I believe that allowing the market to take it's course will cost the least of any of the options.

Giving people government assistance so that they can refinance is nothing more than employment security for mortgage brokers.

 

[bdc63]

This was just political maneuvering.

Bernanke had a highly anticipated speach today in Jackson Hole. He had decided to play the role of the 'FED nazi' -- No Rate Cut for You! -- and they needed a sound bite from the administration to counter balance the markets reaction to that.

They are saying that this might help as many as 80 thousand households. Well whoopty sh*t. That's not even worth alerting the media for.

 

[Capricious]

"...This was just political maneuvering..."


From Bush?


Surely you jest

 

[Chart505]

The bailout is for the lenders, not the buyers. the Govt. is going to help Wall St. out by keeping folks in houses making payments in some fashion. As most know, BK laws were dramatically toughened up a few years ago. Flat walking away from debts is going to be harder.

 

[SHELLY]

.

 

[elgordoboy]

..I like the touch of the added disclaimer.