GOP Votes to Ax Foreclosure Aid Program

Proposal would require HAMP to review all delinquent mortgage loans

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is considering kicking up the fight against foreclosures by banning any that haven't been reviewed by its Home Affordable Modification program. The move would prevent lenders from initiating foreclosure unless HAMP had screened the loan and found it unsalvageable. it would also require them to halt existing foreclosure proceedings when homeowners enter a trial repayment plan, Bloomberg reports. More»

$50B plan proving ineffective as more mortgage holders lose their jobs

(NEWSER) - The Treasury's $50 billion loan-modification program is in danger of being swamped as the foreclosure crisis accelerates, the Congressional Oversight Panel said in a report yesterday. The Home Affordable Modification Program has met its target of 500,000 trial mortgage modifications started by November 1, but the watchdog warned that foreclosure starts are outnumbering modifications 2 to 1 as the crisis spreads from subprime to prime mortgages. More»

(NEWSER) - The government's foreclosure prevention program is failing largely because of mortgage companies who can make more money when loans go delinquent, industry insiders tell the New York Times. Companies servicing mortgage loans charge many lucrative fees as loans go bad—recoverable, if necessary, out of the proceeds when the foreclosed home is sold. That gives institutions little financial incentive to give homeowners a break and make the loan modifications central to the program. More»

(NEWSER) - There’s a big problem with government efforts to keep delinquents in their homes by modifying mortgages: Banks would usually rather foreclose, economists tell the Washington Post. Lenders are only interested in modification for the small group of borrowers who will keep paying only if they get help. For those who’ll eventually default either way, they’d rather foreclose immediately, avoiding a costly delay. More»

'Solutions Center' rehashes Republican classics

(NEWSER) - The Democrats’ “Party of ‘No’” attack seems to be getting to the GOP: House Minority Whip Eric Cantor has started an online “Solutions Center” to showcase Republican plans on basic issues, reports Politico. “When you control the White House, it’s easy to have a national message,” says a Republican official. “Not having it, after 8 years, has been hard.” More»