[NTBKtrader]

http://www.inman.com/inmannews.aspx?ID=54863

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation that aims to increase home-ownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income Americans through restructuring of Federal Housing Administration policies.

The bill, H.R. 5121, dubbed "The Expanding American Homeownership Act," was created in response to rising home prices and outdated loan limits that eliminated FHA financing for buyers in many U.S. housing markets.

The bill specifically will:

Eliminate the current statutory 3 percent minimum down payment, reducing a significant barrier to home ownership. FHA's existing down-payment requirement does not meet the demands of today's marketplace, where most first-time home buyers put down 2 percent or less. The "new" FHA would offer a variety of down-payment options.

Create a new, risk-based insurance premium structure for FHA that would match the premium amount with the credit profile of the borrower. It would replace the current structure, in which there is standard premium amount for all borrowers, while still protecting the soundness of its Insurance Fund. FHA would have the flexibility to charge a lower premium for low-risk borrowers, and to charge higher-risk borrowers a slightly higher premium.

Increase and simplify FHA's loan limits. FHA's loan limit in high-cost areas would rise from 87 percent to 100 percent of the GSE conforming loan limit and in lower-cost areas from 48 percent to 65 percent of the conforming loan limit. In many areas of the country, the existing FHA limits are lower than the cost of new construction, eliminating FHA financing as an option for buyers of new homes in those markets. FHA has simply been priced out of the market in other areas, such as California, where FHA insured only about 5,000 home mortgages in all of 2005, down 95 percent from 109,000 in 2000.

"When FHA was formed in 1934, it was an historic event that made home ownership possible for people who had nowhere else to turn," said Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing Commissioner Brian D. Montgomery. "We are now closer to another landmark -- a modernized, flexible FHA that can respond to the needs of today's low and moderate-income home buyers who need a helping hand."

[emersonbiggins]

No change in the status quo, I see...



"More entitlements for all!"

[TommyJefferson]

Oh great. More socialism to put our country further in debt. Just what we need.

Sometimes you just have to laugh at the utter sickness of it all.

The old cleaning lady where I work recently asked me "Tommy, you knows about da gubament and all that. Why don't they just print up money and give it to folks that needs it? It sure would help folks".

I chuckled to myself at the quaintness of her innocent ignorance and replied "Everything has a cost. Money must be earned. The Federal Government can't simply hand out bags of money to people. That would be silly".

The words had barely left my mouth when it occured to me this is exactly what our government *is doing*, printing up money and handing it out, and I laughed at my own ignorance.

[TommyJefferson]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('NTBKtrader', '&')quot;We are now closer to another landmark -- a modernized, flexible FHA that can respond to the needs of today's low and moderate-income home buyers who need a helping hand."

[Outcast_Searcher]

So here we go again.

The left blames the "evil banks and their scandalous loans", so they now want to formalize and support the stupidity they endlessly whine about -- yes, if you can't afford a THREE PERCENT down payment, you should DEFINITELY be buying a house!

And of course, you should get free medical care, literally endless unemployment, free food, and just about anythning else Obama and his minions can think of -- since we need CHANGE.

I'm SO glad I quit working -- at the time partly it was becasue I refused to help fund the war effort, but I also like the idea of helping fund stuff like this as little as possible.

Luckily, I am single, and am fine with living like a poor man. I feel really bad for productive folks who can't realistically drop out, and thus have to foot the bill for such idiocy.

[gnm]

Words fail me.... As one of the productive chumps out there...




-G

[Tyler_JC]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('TommyJefferson', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('NTBKtrader', '&')quot;We are now closer to another landmark -- a modernized, flexible FHA that can respond to the needs of today's low and moderate-income home buyers who need a helping hand."

[Roy]

What you all don't get is that MORE DEBT will save everyone and lead to a happier and more positive economy. Especially if the banks can get the 'low and moderate income families' to sign death contracts, aka mortgages, like all of us middle class schleps.

A helping hand indeed. The question of who really gets helped by this is not really addressed. But if I had to guess I would guess: BANKERS! Cash cow goes MOOOO!

What a concept. That right there is a fine example of government by the people, for the people, is it not?

[AgentR]

Oh, my! Looky looky! The lesson lasted all of six months.

The only thing kinda funny is imagining the reaction of some Chinese central banker sitting on a pile of US bonds that he hates having even more, yet can't find a good way to not need them!

[Olaf]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Outcast_Searcher', 'S')o here we go again.

The left blames the "evil banks and their scandalous loans", so they now want to formalize and support the stupidity they endlessly whine about -- yes, if you can't afford a THREE PERCENT down payment, you should DEFINITELY be buying a house!

And of course, you should get free medical care, literally endless unemployment, free food, and just about anythning else Obama and his minions can think of -- since we need CHANGE.

I'm SO glad I quit working -- at the time partly it was becasue I refused to help fund the war effort, but I also like the idea of helping fund stuff like this as little as possible.

Luckily, I am single, and am fine with living like a poor man. I feel really bad for productive folks who can't realistically drop out, and thus have to foot the bill for such idiocy.

[Novus]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Olaf', '
')
If I may so inquire, without working, how do you make your way?

[Ludi]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Olaf', '
')If I may so inquire, without working, how do you make your way?

[Olaf]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Novus', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Olaf', '
')
If I may so inquire, without working, how do you make your way?