Details of $75B Loan Modifications and Refinances Released
CNNMoney reports on the details of the real estate stimulus. In part:
The multipronged fix calls for companies to help as many 4 million
struggling borrowers by modifying loans so housing payments are no more
than 31% of monthly gross income. Separately, homeowners who haven’t
missed a payment can refinance into lower-cost loans even if they have
little or no equity. This is expected to help up to 5 million
homeowners.
There is also additional information at www.hud.gov.
To qualify for loan modification:
-
have obtained their mortgage before Jan. 1, 2009;
- have a primary mortgage of less than $729,500;
- live in the property;
- fully document their income by providing tax returns and pay stubs;
- sign a statement of financial hardship; and
- go
for counseling if their total household debt – including auto loans,
credit cards and alimony – totals more than 55% of their income.
March 5th, 2009 at 11:37 pm
Canada’s banking and mortgage system are still in pristine shape. We should just admit that we need to adopt many of Canada’s social, health and finance policies. If we incorporated them into our governmental framework and stopped pretending that we weren’t heading towards partial socialism we’d all be better off. Whenever I see all these stalwart “free market capitalists” on their knees with their hand out to the feds it just fills me with disgust. We need a complete overhaul of the real estate industry from the agent level all the through to the organization of the secondary mortgage market. The commission based real estate brokerage model needs to be dismantled and replaced with a system that provides advocacy, regulation and strict oversight.
March 8th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
Thrifty – A partly socialized system is what we need, and what we should have. I’m with you regarding the slobs at AIG, Citi, and others with their hands out, but the answer is to boot the current suits and nationalize them.
Couldn’t agree more with your assessment of the real estate industry. So much incompetence and waste.
March 9th, 2009 at 8:07 am
The Justice Department needs to break the back of the NAR and institute a national MLS system with a reasonable fee structure so people can divert the money that was previously wasted on real estate agents toward getting competent legal, tax and appraisal advice. I can’t even imagine how many billions of dollars we’ve collectively pumped into the pockets of the real estate industry only to be completely betrayed and dragged into a national housing crisis of historical proportions.
The next topic on here should be “Why the Pearl District is Turning Into a Self Parody”. For all the pretentious hyper self conscious neighborhoods in Portland, there truly is no place here less authentic than the Pearl District.
March 20th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
No kidding! The justice department needs to do that. If the NAR could create and promote a national MLS system with a reasonable fee structure how great would that be? It honestly makes me sick to see the financial issues we are having as a country and a lot of the reasoning behind it due to lack of competent legal, tax, and appraisal advice. The housing market is great for investors right now however, the current housing market is a double edged sword!.
Damon Stratton