Why Congress Is Unlikely
To Act Soon on Foreclosures
ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 4, 2007
WASHINGTON -- Want government help to get out of a bad subprime mortgage? Don't look for Congress to come to your rescue anytime soon.
Lawmakers have lots of ideas and plans -- as well as hearings to share their concerns and assess blame -- but there is no consensus on how to stop the foreclosures. The only thing everyone has agreed on is that something must be done.
"We may have as many as one million to three million people who could lose their homes, not because they lost their jobs, not because the economy collapsed, but because they got bad deals on mortgages," said Sen. Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.), chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.
House and Senate lawmakers are working on different plans to help Americans out of the mortgage crisis, none of which seems ready for signing by President Bush. Sen. Dodd acknowledged as much last week as he urged the White House to take action, despite all the mortgage-related legislation his committee has planned for the fall.
"Those matters will take a little more time," Sen. Dodd said.
Financial markets in the U.S. and around the globe have been shaken by fears about spreading credit problems that started with home mortgages. It began with rising defaults in subprime mortgages -- home loans made to people with weak credit histories. The delinquencies have jolted global credit markets because big hedge funds and other investors poured lots of money into risky subprime mortgages because of their higher returns and now face the prospect that they won't be repaid.
The House and Senate are working on different tracks but the plan furthest down the road is in the Senate, where senators will vote in September on the Transportation-Housing and Urban Development departments spending bill. Inside that bill is $100 million earmarked for nonprofit housing groups to help homeowners in refinancing.
"First and foremost, we need people on the ground to help innocent mortgagors, innocent homeowners refinance when they're on the edge of foreclosure and yet they have the wherewithal for refinancing," said Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.), who sits on the Senate Banking Committee.
To Act Soon on Foreclosures
ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 4, 2007
WASHINGTON -- Want government help to get out of a bad subprime mortgage? Don't look for Congress to come to your rescue anytime soon.
Lawmakers have lots of ideas and plans -- as well as hearings to share their concerns and assess blame -- but there is no consensus on how to stop the foreclosures. The only thing everyone has agreed on is that something must be done.
"We may have as many as one million to three million people who could lose their homes, not because they lost their jobs, not because the economy collapsed, but because they got bad deals on mortgages," said Sen. Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.), chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.
House and Senate lawmakers are working on different plans to help Americans out of the mortgage crisis, none of which seems ready for signing by President Bush. Sen. Dodd acknowledged as much last week as he urged the White House to take action, despite all the mortgage-related legislation his committee has planned for the fall.
"Those matters will take a little more time," Sen. Dodd said.
Financial markets in the U.S. and around the globe have been shaken by fears about spreading credit problems that started with home mortgages. It began with rising defaults in subprime mortgages -- home loans made to people with weak credit histories. The delinquencies have jolted global credit markets because big hedge funds and other investors poured lots of money into risky subprime mortgages because of their higher returns and now face the prospect that they won't be repaid.
The House and Senate are working on different tracks but the plan furthest down the road is in the Senate, where senators will vote in September on the Transportation-Housing and Urban Development departments spending bill. Inside that bill is $100 million earmarked for nonprofit housing groups to help homeowners in refinancing.
"First and foremost, we need people on the ground to help innocent mortgagors, innocent homeowners refinance when they're on the edge of foreclosure and yet they have the wherewithal for refinancing," said Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.), who sits on the Senate Banking Committee.
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