Okay most everyone knows what I think about this massive bailout package Congress is about to pass. In case you missed it, I think it’s a sham. Seriously. A big sham. How else do you explain this to the 30% of tax payers who are not homeowners. How about the 80%+ homeowners who pay their bills on time, buy what they can afford and read before they sign? Yeah. How about these tax payers. Mr. and Mrs. Renter who lives within your means how about you pony up some dough so that we can clean up the mess our Wall Street pals and a few over excited folks made over there.
Okay.
Take a deep breath.
Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!
Now. Here are some of the details of the $300,000,000,000.00 mortgage rescue plan currently being “debated” in the Senate. From the Dallas Morning News:
They would receive a refundable tax credit of up to $8,000, or 10 percent of the home value, on purchases of unoccupied housing.
As part of a regulatory overhaul of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage finance giants, the bill would permanently increase to $625,000, from $417,000, the limit on loans they can purchase from lenders in expensive housing markets. That would make it easier for borrowers in those areas to obtain mortgages at discounted rates.
Later on in the same peice it says:
The Senate bill would provide $150 million to expand counseling for borrowers to prevent foreclosure and establish stricter lender disclosure rules to make plain the maximum monthly payment for an adjustable rate loan.
The bill also establishes an Affordable Housing Trust Fund, to be financed by $500 million to $900 million in fees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Initially, the trust fund would cover any expenses related to the foreclosure rescue plan, meeting a demand by Senate Republicans that taxpayers not pay for the program.
Under the refinancing plan, only borrowers seeking to remain in their primary home would be eligible, shutting out real estate speculators and owners of vacation homes. And lenders would first have to agree to cut the principal balance of loans to roughly 85 percent of each property’s current value, a substantial loss in many housing markets.
Arizona Mortgage Team has a great post with all the details too.