Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) took to the Senate floor on Thursday and talked about the implications of Congress’ cave to the banks on his mortgage “cramdown” proposal, which would have allowed bankruptcy judges to reduce loan amounts and keep borrowers out of foreclosure and in their homes. Durbin eloquently summed More…
With the Senate not exactly in a rush to pass a mortgage cramdown bill, the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now (ACORN) is out with a report that cites a highly successful foreclosure prevention program that could be replicated elsewhere, with enough government support.
Since More…
Here’s another interesting tidbit from The Wall Street Journal: The Obama Administration is expected to unveil new incentives today to encourage servicers to modify loans — particularly second mortgages. The failure to address the problem of second mortgages in the initial housing rescue plan launched in March was a More…
The New York Times gives high-profile treatment today to efforts in Flint, Mich. to deal with a deluge of abandoned and vacant properties by literally shrinking the city — demolishing the houses, urging people to leave, cordoning off the decay and leaving it to nature. The Times focuses on More…
The mortgage crisis might have been at the root of the global economic meltdown, but housing legislation seems destined to be among the last things Congress passes to address the downturn.
Legislation allowing struggling homeowners to save their homes through bankruptcy passed the House last week as part of More…
Over at Economist’s View, Christopher Thornberg offers some ideas for stemming the foreclosure crisis – and while you may not agree with them, I’d rate them all much higher on the scale than having former subprime lending executives make new fortunes buying up distressed assets.
From More…
Banks that received government bailout money are taking heat for spending billions of dollars on bonuses, executive pay, and lavish outings. But there’s another outrage that Washington seems to be missing: The growing number of bank-owned properties in foreclosure scarring neighborhoods across the country.
The volume of More…
The semi-grassroots, semi-astroturf “tea parties” against the stimulus get a thumbs-up from House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio).
In gatherings large and small and at kitchen tables across the nation, Americans who have played by the rules are growing increasingly angry about government rewarding irresponsible behavior and spending their
As Dave Weigel notes, the Tea Party movement to protest the mortgage rescue plan and other government bailouts rolls on, with a planned rally Friday in front of the White House. The revolt over bailouts got a big boost last week with the televised rant by CNBC’s Rick More…
President Obama’s widely praised speech last night laid out the goals of his new housing plan and emphasized the government will help responsible homeowners. But it still left a lot of concerns unanswered, says Sean O’Toole, president of ForeclosureRadar.com, a California firm that tracks foreclosure data. Via More…
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