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Posts Tagged ‘house’
Friday, August 7th, 2009
 US Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) In the wake of a meeting between mortgage servicers and representatives of the US Treasury Department last week, US Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), chair of the Financial Services Committee, threatened to revisit the “cram down” legislation that had failed in the Senate last year. The legislation, which passed the House last year and is supported by the President, would allow bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgage contracts when homeowners file for bankruptcy. While it remains to be seen what effect this would have on both the mortgage companies, and the borrowers, some believe that borrowers would be granted a great deal of relief from bankruptcy judges if the cramdown legislation were passed.
The problem is that there is no reason that a borrower should have to declare bankruptcy to get their mortgages modified or refinanced. And as more and more homeowners fall behind on mortgages, find themselves with motgages that are greater than the value of their homes, or both, the number of homeowners either unable or unwilling to make their mortgage payments will only increase. We talked yesterday about the problem of upside down homeowners encompassing about 32% of homeowners. The category of homeowners potentially in need of a refinance or modification is even larger.
And so while there are times when it might be useful for bankruptcy judges to be able to rewrite mortgage contracts, hopefully the government and the mortgage industry can work together to make mortgage modifications a more workable reality before the “cram down” legislation becomes necessary.
Tags: bankruptcy, Barney Frank, Congress, cramdown legislation, government, house, legislation, modification, Mortgage, mortgages, refinance, Senate
Posted in Industry News | No Comments »
Friday, July 24th, 2009
 As the House continues to debate their appropriations bill, much recent reverse mortgage news has covered speculated and proposed changes in the bill, including questions as to whether the increased property value limit ($625,500) will be extended, and how the FHA will avoid the $798 million taxpayer subsidy requested for the program. The bill approved by the House Appropriations committee on last week instructs HUD to reduce the principal amounts borrowers can receive through the program.
However, the most important point at this time in the bill’s process is that nothing has been finalized. The bill must be approved by the House, then the Senate, then a Conference Committee made up of members from both houses of Congress meets to reconcile changes in the bill, and then the President must sign it for it to become law. This whole process will likely not be completed until well into the fall. I therefore think that at this time, the best course of action is not to panic or react to proposed changes before they become a reality. Obviously lobbying has its place in the legislative process, but at an early draft stage, it seems to be unnecessary for the industry to sit on pins and needles reacting to every change (or proposed change) to the bill before it is in front of the whole Congressional body. And even if a change passes the House or the Senate that is unfavorable, it is still likely that it might not pass through a conference committee in tact. Let’s give the complexity of the legislative process its due.
Tags: appropriations bill, bill, Congress, FHA, house, HUD, reverse mortgage, reverse mortgage legislation, reverse mortgages, Senate, Washington
Posted in Industry News | No Comments »
Thursday, May 14th, 2009
 A house near Grandma's house
My grandmother enjoys telling the story of how I helped them find their new home. I was about 10 at the time, and they were looking at a house in an area of Riverdale called Fieldston, near what would become my high school. I don’t remember all the details, but when I saw the house, I told them that they should buy it and then the whole family could move in. I found rooms for my cousins, my aunts and uncles, my parents, and my brother and I. The house is not that large, but again, I was 10. And it was cozy and gorgeous.
As the years passed, I have a lot of great memories of my time spent there. I remember watching the Clinton impeachment trial from the study and my first experience with the Romance channel. There were family gatherings, tea, chamber music and split pea soup. And I remember, more than 12 years later, going back for the reception after my grandfather’s funeral.
It’s amazing how a place can have so many memmories, and a memoir, essay, or post could probably be written about each of them. And when I first heard about reverse mortgages, it was my grandmother’s house that I thought of first. Because so many of the stories in our family are tied to places, like The House in Stockbridge and The House on River Road, and, as I grow up, those are the stories I want to tell my children. Those are the homes I want to show them, so I can say “Look, this is where I grew up.”
I am young. I have very little idea of anyone’s financial situations and could never dream of making a reverse mortgage calculation. And, due to my love of the house and its high property value, I don’t know what I’d choose to do were I the one mulling over the reverse mortgage option. But any time I see a photo of a “grandma’s house,” I’m glad a program like this exists that can help keep grandparents in their homes should they choose to stay there.
Tags: Fieldston, grandma, grandma's house, grandmother, grandpa, grandparents, home, house, reverse mortgage, reverse mortgages, Riverdale
Posted in Consumer News, Industry News | No Comments »
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