Kill the Mortgage Modification Program?
Kill the Mortgage Modification Program?
The Atlantic, July 6, 2010
Some things just need to be put out of their misery. Is the government's mortgage modification program better off dead? It's falling far short of expectations. At this point, it's kicking out more potential participants than new ones it's accepting. It's no wonder Oversight and Government Reform Committee Ranking Member Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Domestic Policy Subcommittee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) are calling for the Obama administration to kill the program (.pdf). Should the Treasury formally wind it down?
'Bulk Sales' of Condos Clear Supply, at a Cost
Wall Street Journal, July 7, 2010
The financial clouds hovering over the Monteverde condominium development in Boynton Beach, Fla., were driven away in late spring when an investor bought 118 of the project's 219 units in a "bulk sale," a popular method of moving large numbers of condos in one transaction. But Dan Berwitz, a sales representative for a computer company who paid $204,000 for a unit in the Monteverde in 2007, has mixed feelings about the deal. He is pleased that the sale will bring financial stability to his building, but he isn't happy that the bulk-sale buyer plans to sell the units far below what he paid, in some cases as low as $100,000. "But unfortunately, right now, there's nothing we can do," he said.
U.S. Mortgage Applications Soar on Refinance Demand
Reuters, July 7, 2010
Refinancing drove total U.S. mortgage applications to a nine-month high last week, while demand for loans to purchase homes sunk to a near 13-year low as buyers remained sidelined after the expiration of federal tax credits. Mortgage rates stuck around record lows, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday, giving homeowners another chance to cut monthly payments by refinancing.