House Votes to Kill Another Housing-Assistance Program

The House of Representatives approved a bill, 242-177, on Friday that would end the federal program that lets out-of-work homeowners take out government loans to temporarily stay current on their mortgages, CongressDaily reported on Friday. The measure would immediately turn off $1 billion in loans available through the Housing and Urban Development Department to borrowers with costly medical bills or who have lost their job. The Senate is not poised to act on the measure and the White House has issued a veto threat on the bill. The House this week plans to take up two other Republican-led bills aimed at killing Obama administration housing-assistance programs. One would end the Home Affordable Modification Program; another would terminate the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, which has $1 billion left for rehabilitating abandoned homes.


http://www.dsnews.com/articles/house-votes-to-end-emergency-homeowner-relief-program-2011-03-11

Bank Chief Rejects Idea of Reducing Home Loans

Showing resistance for the first time against government pressure to write off tens of billions worth of mortgage debt, Bank of America executives said yesterday that the idea was unworkable and warned that it would be unfair to borrowers who had managed to stay current on their loans, the New York Times reported today. "There's a core problem that if you start to help certain people and don't help other people, it's going to be very hard to explain the difference," said Brian T. Moynihan, the chief executive of Bank of America. "Our duty is to have a fair modification process." All 50 state attorneys general, as well as a host of federal agencies, are pushing for a settlement over investigations into foreclosure abuses by major mortgage servicers that could cost the industry $20 billion or more. Industry experts estimate that nearly a trillion dollars worth of mortgage debt is "underwater," a result of house prices having fallen since the original loans were made. Federal officials hope a settlement with the servicers will help individual borrowers and provide a cushion for the weak housing market.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/business/09bank.html

New Florida Homeowner Assistance Program Begins

A new program designed to help distressed Florida homeowners has begun operations.


Central Florida News reports that the Florida Hardest-Hit program will use $1 billion in federal funds to help struggling homeowners make their mortgage payments for up to 18 months or make a delinquent loan current. The funds will go directly to lenders and will not need to be paid back unless the home is sold within five years.

The program will begin taking applications from Lee County residents before rolling out across the entire state. An estimated 20,000 homeowners may be eligible for program assistance.


SOURCE: Central Florida News