Housing Market Teeters Between Recovery, Relapse

Housing Market Teeters Between Recovery, Relapse
The Washington Post

The battered housing market appears to be on the mend, with sales climbing nationally and prices leveling off, even rising in some spots.

But swelling unemployment and the related delinquencies and foreclosures threaten to upend these gains, industry experts said.

Federal Reserve finds signs of economic stabilization in some regions
Los Angeles Times

The U.S. economy's downward slide is slowing, with more regions seeing signs of stabilization since mid-June, according to the Federal Reserve's latest snapshot of the economy.

The Fed's so-called beige book, a compilation of impressions collected from businesses across the country and released Wednesday, offered a brighter assessment than a previous report, which suggested that the economy overall continued to deteriorate in April and May.

‘Cram-Down’ May Be Revived to Boost Mortgage Relief
Bloomberg

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank threatened to revive the mortgage “cram- down” bill that stalled in Congress this year, saying lenders aren’t being aggressive enough in modifying troubled home loans.

Cram-downs let federal judges lengthen terms, cut interest rates and reduce mortgage balances of bankrupt homeowners, even if the lender objects. Congress gave the mortgage industry every legislative tool it requested to allow them to more easily modify loans for those facing foreclosure, and the results have been below expectations, Frank said in a statement today.

Lucrative Fees May Deter Efforts to Alter Loans
The New York Times

This week, the Obama administration summoned mortgage company executives to Washington to demand they move faster to lower payments for homeowners sliding toward foreclosure. Treasury officials called on the companies to hire and train more people quickly to field applications for relief.

But industry insiders and legal experts say the limited capacity of mortgage companies is not the primary factor impeding the government’s $75 billion program to prevent foreclosures. Instead, it is that many mortgage companies are reluctant to give strapped homeowners a break because the companies collect lucrative fees on delinquent loans.

Guidelines Aim to Help Struggling Borrowers
The Wall Street Journal

The Obama administration plans to announce Thursday new guidelines designed to help struggling homeowners with Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgages.

The guidelines implement changes enacted by Congress in May to bring the FHA's loan-modification program more in line with the White House's foreclosure-prevention plan. The Obama plan, announced in February, provides financial incentives for mortgage companies to reduce loan payments to affordable levels.